Dead Memories
by FiniteAnarchy
Summary: Three years before the Great Revelation, Sookie encounters a stranger while driving home. Confused, lost and alone, an unlikely friendship begins to form. What's a telepath to do with a stray vampire, witches and werewolves? E/S AU
1. Knowing what we are

This was my entry in Random Fandom's "Every Picture Tells a Story" Challenge. It didn't win, by any margin but I did plan out a multi-chapter fic from it. I wanted to explore what vampires might be like before the Great Revelation.

Characters belong to Charlaine Harris. The wonderful Chicpea is acting as my beta for this story. If you haven't started reading her story, full of demony goodness, "Birds of a Feather," I suggest you go do that. After you finish this chapter :D (Her's is longer.)

* * *

Chapter 1: We know what we are, but not what we may be.

Approximately Three years before the Great Revelation

I.

It was a new year. I'd celebrated with Sam and the other new waitresses in Merlotte's after all the customers had left. It was a great night for me since I'd made enough tips to counterbalance the massive headache I'd accumulated being around so many people. This was our first New Year's working for Sam at Merlotte's.

"Resolutions?" Arlene asked.

"The same as every other year." Danielle rolled her eyes. "Lose ten pounds."

"Find a new man," said Arlene and Lafayette together. We all laughed.

"Get the bar to a more stable place," Sam said as he poured us each a little shot of some sweet blue concoction he made. "Dawn? Sookie? What about you two?"

Dawn turned to me and said, "Maybe I'll finally get that fool brother of yours to settle down." She was thinking of the last time they were together and I got a sharp view of Jason full monty. Eww.

I gritted my teeth. I didn't like Dawn. And I wanted to hit my brother over the head for ever having slept with her. "Maybe you will," I said, smiling sweetly and a little too wide. _When pigs fly_, I thought. Then I admonished myself. Maybe Dawn and Jason would work out. Maybe they'd settle in together, have two children; one with blond hair like ours and one with dark hair like Dawn.

Yeah, right. I shook my head.

"To be a better Christian."

2.

The drive home was a short one. There were no street lights along Hummingbird Road. Few roads in the parish that weren't main thoroughfares had lighting. In theory, I could see why, but when you're driving home at three in the morning, more lights would be nice. That's probably why I almost ran over the man lying in the middle of the road.

I hit the brake hard. I said a quick prayer in thanks for remembering my seatbelt. The man illuminated by my headlights wasn't moving. He was lying face down and he was wearing a too-small, dirty and frayed looking white t-shirt, and dark pants that looked equally filthy. The shirt was strained over large muscles, like he'd borrowed it from someone half his size. His feet were bare.

I zipped my jacket and got out of the car. I wasn't sure if it was the illumination from the car but he looked dead. His skin was terribly white and more importantly, there was a void where his mind should be. His hair, if it had been clean, would probably be even lighter than mine. As I leaned over him I realized the dirt on the formerly white t-shirt wasn't dirt at all. At least not all of it was dirt. Some of it was distinctly blood. The pants looked caked with mud and bits of grass.

My fingers went to his neck, ready to confirm what I already thought. I didn't want to leave him in the middle of the road but I would have to if I was going to get to a phone and call the sheriff. As I touched the icy skin I wasn't prepared for his sudden movement.

He was on top of me in an instant, pinning me to the cold ground. His face was warped in a snarl with two fangs protruding from his mouth like a snake. I sucked in a breath and screamed. A hand clamped over my mouth as he pushed my face to side and struck.

The word came to me before I could fully process it. Vampire. I could feel him drinking. I tried to push him, to kick but I might as well have been trying to lift my car. After a moment I realized the struggling was exciting him and a stopped. I was afraid I might have to fight off a different kind of attack. The pain was terrible and burning. I whimpered, feeling tears escape, and said a brief prayer for Gran and Jason.

He stopped drinking and extracted himself from my neck to look at me. For a moment our eyes met and I had time, in my lightheadedness, to think his eyes were beautiful and incredibly bright on a face that was equally as dirty and blood spattered as his clothes. Maybe he was a messy eater. He leaned down and licked the tears from my face. I shut my eyes, waiting.

"Look at me."

My eyes shot open at the sudden words. He moved his hand from my mouth to my hair. I felt him brush off the strands that fell on my forehead when he tackled me to the ground. He didn't take his eyes off mine.

I felt a slight tickling, like a dozen spiders were crawling over my head. "You won't tell anyone of this."

I shook my head. "No. I promise." I felt my heart race and the strange feeling in my head increased. He grabbed my hair in a fist.

He repeated himself, practically growling it out. "You will not tell anyone about this."

"I won't tell anyone, I promise. Please," I said, realizing that my whole body was absolutely freezing. "Don't hurt me."

He sat up suddenly. "It's not working." I saw a fleeting expression of terror on his face as he looked up.

"Um, what's not working?" I risked asking.

He focused his gaze on me again, assessing. "My…" and he paused like he couldn't figure out the right word for whatever he was trying. "My will." He said in the end.

I thought about what he'd said and what I knew from vampire movies. "You were trying to force your will on me?"

"Yes."

"Is that…normal?" Maybe it was the lightheadedness but now I was curious. Vampires. I wasn't the only weird thing out there. And there was also the tiny, tiny chance that that if I kept talking, maybe I'd see tomorrow.

"It has worked on everyone so far."

Well that wasn't very good for me. "So what does that mean?" I tried to probe his mind for the answer but there was nothing. An empty head.

"I don't know. Your blood is…sweeter."

Like candy? I wanted to ask him what that meant too but decided against it. "Are…" I hesitated. "Are you going to kill me?"

It looked like he couldn't decide. Did vampires kill the humans they drank from? This vampire didn't look like he really needed to…not that he wasn't a level eleven on the scariness meter. But his skin was visibly less pale now. Mine was probably blue.

Several tangible seconds passed and he still hadn't answered. The wind kicked up suddenly and I started to shiver. I really wanted to get off the ground. But of course, he was still sitting on me.

"What's your name?"

The vampire was lost in thought and my speaking had visibly startled him, as if he'd already forgotten I was there. "I don't know."

Oh, boy. "You can't remember your name?"

"No."

"Do you remember how you got here?"

"I was running west."

"Why?"

"It is faster than walking."

I had a moment of hysterical laughter. I knew I should be terrified. I knew there was a good chance of getting hypothermia or at least a chill in my back from the weather. I also knew there was nothing funny about the situation I was in. Perhaps the threat of impending death, when so few things of interest had ever happened to me had, made me delirious. "Yes," I said. "It is." My delirium also made me braver. "If you're not going to kill me, can I get off the ground…please?"

After a tense moment of further staring he was off me faster than my eyes could see. I scuttled back until I felt my car behind me and stood up. My car had been idling all this time, which felt a lot longer than the couple of minutes it probably was, and the hood was very warm. It felt good against my back.

"Thanks." I said as I tried to get my heart rate to even out. I touched the side of my neck and felt where he'd bitten me. "I'm not bleeding," I stated, registering that numbly. "Why?"

"I can stop it. After I drink." He was standing at a distance now but I had no doubt he could be on me again in half a second.

"So you don't remember your name but you seem to know you're a vampire and how to drink blood and force your will on someone." I said, summarizing this very odd interaction we were having. "How is that possible?"

"I do not know. All I can remember is everything since the snow."

"The Snow? It snowed almost two weeks ago." There had been a freak snow storm in mid-December that had the entire town buzzing since we so rarely saw snow. "And you've been running around Northern Louisiana ever since?"

"Is that where I am? Yes." He was thinking hard about something. "I was on a road in these." He looked at his bloody t-shirt and filthy pants and so did I. Yes, they did appear the worse for wear. "I ran until I saw someone; a human and realized that I was not." He shrugged his shoulders then, "I was hungry and I knew what I needed to do. I could feel it."

I was so engrossed in the story he was telling that I almost forgot to be frightened. It was obvious he wasn't from this area. He had an accent; not a heavy one but something that I couldn't place, like it was a mix from a half-dozen different places. And I was both thrilled and completely irritated that I couldn't read his mind. "What happened to the human?" I asked, tentatively.

He moved a step closer and I stood up rigidly against the car. "I drank until I felt full. I could hear his heartbeat. I knew when to stop." I felt my own heart pick up at that and he looked at my jacket covered chest like he could see right through it. I was afraid to move now.

He put a hand on my neck, covering the fresh bite marks. I breathed in and felt a sudden silence I had never felt before around another person. I thought that no matter what this pitiful creature had done, this peace around another person was nothing short of wonderful after a lifetime full of nonstop blathering. Despite all that, when he grazed his thumb over the fresh bite marks, it didn't stop me from thinking he was about to break my neck.

"I am sorry I hurt you when I bit. I was…I realized that it could be…pleasurable for the human if I do it correctly. I was hungry."

I felt myself shudder with sudden relief. No, Sookie. The giant, slightly feral vampire wasn't about to snap your neck with his super strength. He just needed a snack!

"That's why you were laying in the road," I said. "You were waiting for someone to pass by and stop."

"Yes."

I had a thought about vampires picking off people from the side of the road because some poor person was trying to be a good Samaritan.

He seemed to realize what I was thinking. "And you did."

Yep, that was me, Good Samaritan Sookie. "What have you been doing all this time?" I asked. "Aside from…" and raised my hand to my neck to touch the bite. His hand was still on my neck and it felt awfully intimate. More intimate and only slightly less scary than when he'd been chowing down on me a few minutes ago. "Eating."

"Looking for others," he said, "like me. So far, I am alone."

"Surely there are more," which I only realized as soon as I said it. There couldn't be only just one vampire, could there? If he'd been made one like in movies, someone had to make him. If he'd been born one…same thing, right?

Were there others like me? No one in my family was and so far I was a singularity…but where did it come from? I tucked those thoughts away when the vampire responded. "If there are, I have not seen them yet. I am worried about finding one."

"Why? Oh…oh. Yes, I see."

"I have…persuaded some answers from humans. No one seems to know of vampires. It is a logical conclusion."

I really wanted to ask him about this persuasion thing. Was it instinctual? Was it hypnosis? Why didn't it work on me? If he couldn't remember anything about his life, it had to be instinctual, or something very close to it. Gran liked to watch Soaps during the day. Wasn't this a common theme among them? They forgot everything about themselves but it didn't stop them from knowing certain things, like what clothes were and what they were for or what a house is. "If you haven't encountered other vampires," I began to ask, trying to fit my brain around the concept of an amnesiac vampire, "and you are stronger than a human being, how did you come to be covered in blood?"

"Wolves." He said.

"Wolves? There are no wolves around here."

"There are." He removed his hand from where it rested on me and to his shirt where he stretched it down near the bottom. What I thought might have been a snagging on a tree branch was distinctively claw marks. "Four of them surrounded me in the woods south of here, two nights ago. I killed one of them." The first signs of confidence and triumph formed on his face.

"Wow. With your bare hands?"

"Yes. I am very strong." Yeah, I kinda got that memo already. "They tried very hard to bring me down but I am faster than them."

A harsh wind kicked up and my teeth began to chatter. "I have so many questions to ask you." I said and wanted to smack myself. _This guy was on the verge of killing you!_ My mind was telling me "Get out while you can!" But the other less logical part was screaming "Holy crap, vampires are real!"

"You are cold. Do you have shelter nearby?"

Shelter? This didn't look any older than his mid-twenties, but shelter? I hesitated for a moment. Obviously I had to live nearby since there were so few homes this way. And old Jesse Compton wasn't likely to be out this time of night. "Yes," I said, "down the road." He wasn't wearing a coat…or shoes. "Aren't you freezing?"

"It doesn't bother me."

"Do you have somewhere safe to stay? Is it true, vampires can't go out in daylight?" I wasn't going to offer him one of the extra bedrooms at Gran's but now, when he wasn't being frightening and he just looked so unsure of himself it was really kind of sad.

"It's true. I will be safe for the day."

After a tense second or two, I eased away from the hood of my car. He was watching me very carefully, reconsidering maybe if I was some kind of vulnerability. I didn't take my eyes off him until I got into the car and started driving. I watched him get smaller and smaller in my rearview until the turn off to the old Stackhouse homestead.

Parking in the back like I always did, I ran up and unlocked the back door. My shields were down fully by now. I'd let them go as soon as I was clear of Merlotte's and since I couldn't hear the vampire anyway, I'd never put them back up. Gran's mind was a comfort in its dreaming state. What wasn't comforting was the vampire's mind I could feel just inside the tree line. He'd followed me. My heart rate picked up again as I entered the house and turned to face out. I hoped the myth about invitations was true. I waited for a full minute but he never came out from the tree line.

I chided myself. Maybe he was scared? He was all alone, as far as he knew and had no memory. But there wasn't anything for me to do about it. Except it wasn't right to be out there in just a t-shirt and jeans on such a cold night, even if he said the cold didn't affect him. I didn't know what vampires were; if they were some creation of evil, of God, or something else entirely. But, I thought, here was something I could do as a good Christian by helping someone who so clearly was in need.

Quietly, so as not to disturb Gran, I went upstairs to the room Jason sometimes stayed in. There were some clothes there, though Jason was a good deal shorter than the vampire. I took some sweatpants, socks and a big sweatshirt from his old dresser and grabbed a big blanket from the closet. I didn't think any of Jason's old shoes would fit. I folded everything up in a neat pile and brought them downstairs and out onto the porch. The back porch was screened in so I left them on the top of the steps that led to it. He was out there still.

After relocking the door, I got ready for bed. Brushing my teeth in the bathroom was the first chance I got to see the bite marks that were plainly visible on my neck. They weren't big and they looked…clean? I put some Neosporin on them and would figure out a way to cover them up tomorrow.

As I started to drift off, my mind wandered back to the strange creature I'd met and hoped he would find himself again. I felt his mind move closer to the house. It stopped and I waited for something to happen. Nothing did.

Eventually his mind drifted back into the trees and I fell asleep.


	2. When Spidey Senses Go

Chapter 2: When Spidey Senses Go A Tingling

A/N: I just wanted to thank everyone for their wonderful reviews, alerts and favorites. I was not expecting so many from just the first chapter. I haven't had a chance to reply to all of them but please know that I read them and appreciate them greatly.

Also big thanks to chicpea who is betaing this. Tomorrow is Tuesday and there will be a new chapter of "Birds of a Feather!" (YAY!)

* * *

I didn't roll out of bed until noon the next day. Luckily for me, Merlotte's was not going to open until four and, since I'd worked the holiday shift last night I didn't have to be back at work until tomorrow's dinner shift. Gran was up already, naturally. I listened as she fluttered around the kitchen. I inhaled and her cooking hit my nose even through the closed door. Pie. Yum. Gran was really the matriarch of our little family. Her cooking, while probably not always the healthiest thing around was still some of the best in Bon Temps. In my opinion, anyway. Possibly I was biased.

I stretched and rubbed my face to get the sleep out. My fingers brushed across my neck and last night flooded back in a sort of dazed, surrealistic memory. I had learned several new things last night; one – vampires were real; two – yes they did drink blood but no they didn't have to kill people in order to do that. And the more I thought about it the more that made sense if there really were vampires living among people in secret. It would be a lot of bodies to hide if a vampire killed everyone they ever drank from. They also had some sort of hypnotic power they used to keep themselves hidden, which, incidentally did not work on me. The best one, to me was that I was not the only one out there who was different. This was a major upheaval in my rather mundane and often lonely, life. And lastly – finally there was someone I couldn't hear.

Some people were more difficult than others to hear. Sam, he was one of those. I only got stray thoughts and occasional images from him. His mind felt different; kind of swirly and unclear. I got emotions from him usually but it tended to be much more opaque than, say, the majority of the people who came into Merlotte's. It was one of the reasons I liked working for him so much. When you can hear everything your boss is thinking, from bills to employees, to who was working out and who wasn't, not to mention the sometimes illegal things they did, continuing to work under that person becomes difficult. There was that couple who owned a clothing boutique and beat their kids. They didn't see it like that in their heads though. The kids needed to be taught how to behave properly. I'd had another waitressing job with a manager who occasionally liked to help himself to a little extra from the daily earnings. He was also pretty handsy and had an affair going on with another waitress. Though he was married.

I grabbed some warm clothes from the closet; one of my few turtlenecks (I only had two) since the weather so rarely necessitated them, and brought them with me into the bathroom so I could dress quickly after my shower. I would have to buy something to hide this bite.

I could hear Gran wondering what was taking me so long, even though I'd barely gotten a full night's sleep. She was making a list in her head of groceries. It was simple to focus on that; carrots, bread, cream cheese, baking powder…oh. I smiled to myself. She was going to make a carrot cake later. I'd pick up the ingredients when I went out later.

As I scrubbed, my mind wandered back to the vampire from last night. No memory. He couldn't remember his own name. And he'd been wandering around, lost and alone for nearly two weeks, relying basically on what seemed to be instinct alone. Surely, he had people – other vampires who were looking for him? What if he really was alone? If no one from his regular life even knew he was missing? The longer I thought about the vampire, the more questions I had. And I couldn't answer any of them. I thought it was safe to say in the two weeks of his memory loss he'd been relying primarily on instinct; whatever instincts vampires had when they were…born?

Tina had been waiting for me when I opened the bathroom door and let out a small meow before standing up and rubbing herself against my legs. She ran ahead of me into the kitchen.

"The pie smells great, Gran." I said when I saw her.

"Oh, good." She was smiling as she took it out of the oven. One was already cooling on the sill.

I took another whiff. "Apple?"

"Of course. Still a perfect time for it." Then she reached for a second one.

"Oh, Pecan too!"

"Which one do you think Jason will take?" She asked.

"He'll probably want one of each."

Gran nodded and closed the oven. "Sookie, do you think you'll have time to run over to the WalMart later? I was thinking of making something for your Aunt Linda."

Aunt Linda was Gran's daughter, my father's sister. She lives in Monroe and had just finished her first round of chemotherapy treatments. Not too long ago she'd gone in for her yearly checkup, which included a pap smear and mammogram. As she told it, the initial ultrasounds picked up some strange shadows in her uterus. After a few more tests and a biopsy, they'd found something that was malignant. The doctors she had were good, from what we understood. Her job provided her with the insurance she needed to take care of the chemo and the medication she needed. And thank God for that, otherwise it could be a whole lot worse.

Gran didn't take the news well. She put on a brave face for Aunt Linda but she couldn't hide the sadness from me. I tried to stay out of her head as much as I could but I'd still hear her praying every night for God to take care of her baby girl. She had a daughter, my cousin, Hadley who was a couple of years older than me. I didn't know where Hadley lived and no one had seen her for a few months now, though Gran and Linda both suspected she'd drop in if she needed something.

"Sure, Gran." I took a mental inventory on what we were low on. "Just make a list of what you need."

There weren't too many places open on New Year's Day, but WalMart was one of them. Thankfully, it wasn't terribly busy. The store was having its New Year's Day sale but by the looks of the haphazardly strewn items around several of the aisles, the majority of sale shoppers have come and gone. However, since it was a sale day, I allowed myself the luxury of wandering up and down the different aisles on the chance of finding a few deals.

All the Christmas items were heavily discounted and I picked up a few decorations for next year. I found a box of nicely decorated Christmas cards with images of a snow covered village. Gran would like those. I meandered through the clothing department and found a couple of pretty scarves for myself which wouldn't look out of place, given the current temperatures. And since I earned a record number of tips last night, I thought I'd throw in a new pair of pants as well (heavily discounted).

Passing through the men's side, I paused. Jason could afford to buy his own clothes now that he'd been promoted to supervisor on the road crew. But that led me to thinking what I had taken from Jason's leftovers at Gran's and the vampire they were for. Nervously, I ran my hand over my covered neck where he bit me. It seemed irrational that I should be worried about his wellbeing.

He could have killed me.

But he didn't!

But he almost did!

He's a vampire. _A vampire!_ A hungry vampire. With amnesia.

The world was suddenly remarkably bigger. I looked around the department and the other people nearby. Most people's thoughts were revolving around their soon to be purchased items. If something would fit and how much weight they gained over the holidays. There was one mind I couldn't see into. It was sad; that much I could tell, but it was otherwise a cloudy snarl. This man looked like he'd fit right in at a Hell's Angels gathering. He had a dark beard, cropped close to his face and he was wearing a bandana over his hair. Simply put, he looked like a badass. Except for the fact that he was shopping for dress shirts.

I watched him for a moment longer before he caught me looking at him. His mind was different; like Sam's but not. I smiled, a little too cheerfully and turned my cart to move quickly down a different section.

I had been careless. That right there was one of the reasons people I went to school with had coined me with the moniker, "Crazy Sookie." Trying to stay out of people's heads wasn't easy. Sometimes it was absolutely impossible, which made it difficult to concentrate on what those individuals were actually saying. Then sometimes a brain would really catch my attention and I'd be so lost in following it that the occasional vacant expression was often mistaken for simplicity.

I sighed and kept walking. I found myself in front of some men's t-shirts and frowned. Nervousness had me tapping my finger on the handle of the cart. I couldn't figure out if I should be excited or fearful at the possibility of running into the vampire again. Cautious might be the most appropriate course of action. Approach with caution. And possibly with a stake. Well, even if a stake didn't kill him, it was still a weapon. There are probably a surprising number of things you could kill with a stake in the heart. That's the word in Sunnydale, anyway.

I picked up two extra-large and plain t-shirts for four dollars each and put them in my cart. They weren't expensive and if I didn't see the vampire again I could always return them.

He had no shoes. While I'd noticed that when he was lying in the road, it turned out to not be the most pressing point of discussion at the time, what with the possibility of death and all. But now I had time to think about it and wonder if vampires could get frostbite. And if they did, would the exposed areas turn black? And if they have no pulse (and therefore no heartbeat) how does the blood…pump?

Why was I even thinking about this when he attacked me and tried to make me forget about it? It was evident that this vampire was hungry. He took what he wanted and now he'd move on and try to figure out how he got…however he is. Somehow. Except, a small part of me was gleefully excited at the prospect of talking to him again. Talking to him and nothing else. I wouldn't have to concentrate on having to block out his thoughts.

That was simply wonderful. Plus knowing about vampire anatomy would just be, well, neat. Though with the amnesia, he might not even know.

I ventured past the jeans area, having no idea what size the vampire was, instead picking up some sweatpants. Sweatpants were definitely more generous when it came to size discrimination. I put them in the cart and glanced at my watch. I had wasted a lot of time lost in my own thoughts. Moving on, I took a guess on shoe size and grabbed a pair of simple canvas slip-ons for eight-ninety-nine. I was saving the receipt for all of these items.

In the winter weather department, the store kept fireplace logs for sale. I glanced at the price, hoping with the sale day they'd be reasonable but for the number of logs we would need, it wouldn't be worth it. We had plenty of woods around our house, naturally, but tree chopping was never something I'd enjoy or want to do. When Jason was living with Gran and me, he'd chop up a small tree and it would usually last most of the winter. Since he'd moved, that stopped. Maybe I'd nudge him into cutting one down for next winter.

My last order of business was the grocery department, where I managed to find everything on Gran's list and a couple of the items we were running low on. All in all, New Year's Day was not a bad day for shopping. Finishing up in the checkout line, with everything bagged and loaded into my cart, I headed toward the parking lot, except I stopped short in front of a bulletin board near the exit and was nearly run into by the person behind me.

"Sorry." I barely glanced at the woman as she went around me. I was too busy looking at a candid picture my vampire. There, in large print was the word, "Missing," and underneath it, "Have you seen this man?"

_What the hell?_

The photo was a close up. His hair was down and he was looking off to the right at something unknown and away from the camera, his attention clearly focused elsewhere. It reminded me of sports shots I'd see the newspaper all the time, all meant to look like you're right next to the player but really they were taken from yards away. Underneath the photo was information. "Answers to the name Eric Northman. Long Blond hair. Blue eyes. Approximately 6'4"-6'5". Mr. Northman is a prominent member of the Shreveport business community. Willing to reward up to $50,000 for information leading to his whereabouts." The flyer listed a phone number with a Shreveport area code.

I looked to my right. I looked to my left. Glancing quickly behind me, no one was paying any attention when I ripped the flyer off the board, folded it in half and shoved it into the front basket of my cart. I walked quicker than I normally would have and loaded everything into the trunk of my car in record time before returning the cart to the dispensary and getting into my car.

Unfolding the flyer, I reread it. I let out a surprised laugh at the vampire's name. "Eric Northman." I said to my windshield. It was certainly…simple. Nothing vaguely European or old fashioned about it. He was no Basil or Oliver for this vampire. At least I could stop referring to him as "the vampire." But something was clearly disingenuous about this missing person's flyer. Had I not known Eric was a vampire the photo wouldn't strike me as strange, but as someone who was simply looking away when someone stole a candid shot of him. But why would someone take a candid shot of a vampire, anyway? And what did "a prominent member of the Shreveport business community" mean, anyway for a vampire? Surely someone would notice the odd hours.

I stewed for a bit longer and didn't come up with any ideas on who might have put these flyers up. Could be whoever he does associate with. But those people could be the same ones who gave him amnesia.

Maybe these business associates didn't know he was a vampire. There was certainly no indication on the flyer that would suggest anything untoward if you happened to see him on a street. He was kind of hard to miss. Whoever was putting these up certainly wanted him back if they were willing to offer $50,000 for information. That was a lot of money in these parts. I know plenty of people who could use that kind of money. Of course, I was one of them.

I briefly tallied up the amount I'd spent on the men's clothing in my trunk and the amount I so happily worked my butt off for last night. My tips were a pittance in comparison to $50,000 true enough, but still, I wouldn't be the only one thinking there was some kind of catch to it all. People here were hard workers. They knew the value of a dollar. To offer that kind of money for…what, _information?_ No. It wasn't normal. A thousand, maybe. Or two thousand. Certainly not more than five.

I glanced up at the sky. It was cloudy, as it tended to be in January, and the sun was low. There was maybe another two hours or so before the sun would set. I needed to find a phone. I knew the description of the vampire I had encountered was accurate but nothing else to indicate anything truthful. Except, maybe that whoever put these up didn't know he had amnesia. How would he answer to the name Eric Northman if he didn't know that was his name?

There was one way to find out. I started driving, making my way back toward Bon Temps. A solitary payphone stood at the gas station about three miles out from WalMart.

"Yes," answered a throaty, female voice when I dialed the number.

"Hi," I said, and had to clear my throat. "I am calling about the missing person's poster I saw in…" I wasn't ready to say where I'd seen it. There were probably a lot of them around. "Shreveport." The WalMart wasn't in Shreveport but if he was from there, I was positive there would be flyers throughout the city.

There was a brief pause and I think I heard fingers snapping in the background. "You've seen Mr. Northman?"

"Maybe. I can't be positive it's him. He didn't tell me his name."

"Where was this?"

"Alexandria." I'd thought up a few answers on my drive to the station.

"That's a long way's away from Shreveport." I heard some shuffling in the background and a chair scraping the floor.

"Well…he's kind of unforgettable, isn't he?" I was going for enamored and I think I hit my mark. "You know what I mean? He's quite the looker." At least he would be after a shower or three.

There was another pause. "Yes. He's very handsome."

"So," I said, in an overly cheerful voice. "I was wondering if – "

"The reward is contingent on our locating him. Where in Alexandria did you see him?"

"Actually I was hoping you could tell me a little bit more about him? Because you see, I wouldn't want you travel all that way and find yourself on a silly wild goose chase." I faked a laugh there as if driving for two-plus hours for nothing would just be the silliest thing in the world. "And since I didn't even catch his name…" I let the sentence drift off on purpose so the woman could draw her own conclusions. I'd rather they think I was only calling because of the reward anyway.

I start to tap my fingers lightly on the metal that boxed in the payphone. I was used to awkward silences. Sort of.

"The last thing he was seen wearing was a pair of black jeans and a white t-shirt."

This woman had been there the night he lost his memory then.

"Anything else?"

"He…has an accent." She said, sounding irritated.

"Does he…" I stopped here both because I wanted a dramatic pause and because I wasn't sure how to phrase what I wanted to ask without bringing additional suspicion. "The flyer mentioned he is a prominent member of the Shreveport business community so it seems weird that a young looking guy like that would just _disappear_ right? And this guy, well, he didn't look like he was kidnapped or anything so I suppose I'm just wondering if there's something else going on. You know, upstairs?"

Based on the sound of uncertainty on the other end before the woman became completely silent, she didn't know how to answer.

"Is it something violent? Should I be concerned about approaching him?"

"Yes," she said, eventually. "It would be better if he is approached by us since we are familiar with his…condition." Yes, his need for blood, super strength and daylight allergy is certainly a "condition." "Just point us to where you saw him; that would be best for everyone. If you know where he is, we need to know."

"We?"

"Myself and the others looking for him."

"Are you his family?"

"Yes. Of course." I didn't know if vampires had families or not.

"How are you related?" I asked.

There was another brief pause. "What does that have to do with telling us where you found Mr. Northman."

"No member of a family would address another member so formally."

I hung up. Whoever this woman was, she'd been involved in what happened to the vampire Eric Northman. I didn't believe she was related to the vampire I'd met. For one thing, it's day. Vampire family would all be…vampires, I expect. I suppose they could have human families but…this was all too much. Too many questions and not any answers.

I walked over to my car and started driving back to Bon Temps. I made it home around five and with an appetite.

When I pulled up around the back of the house, Jason's truck was there. I left all the clothes in the trunk and started bringing in the groceries. Jason and Gran were at the kitchen table gossiping away over all the activity New Year's gave Bon Temps the excuse to provide.

"Hey Sook!" Jason greeted as I walked in. He stood up and grabbed some of the bags I was carrying. "Whatcha got here?" Jason asked it more of the bags than me and started dumping out the groceries I'd bought on the table.

I walked out to get the rest and heard Gran telling Jason, "I expect you to put some of that away."

Once I brought everything in, Gran exclaimed over the decorations I bought for next year. Jason was set with the task of stowing it up in the attic while Gran took out a warm plate from the oven for me and got to work preparing the dishes she was making for Aunt Linda.

Jason came back in to the sound of Gran chopping on the cutting board. "Sook, you hear about Holly yet?"

"No, what's up?" I remember Holly had submitted an application to waitress at Merlotte's a few months after it opened. Sam had called her at one point after one of the waitresses left in September to go off to college. But when Sam heard she was pregnant, he didn't want someone who would work for a short time and take off for maternity, especially if he wasn't certain what day she would be back.

"She had her kid. She's up in the hospital in Clarice. Day before yesterday."

"You're kidding, right? She wasn't due for a couple more weeks."

"Everlee called me not five minutes before Jason got here and told me the same," Gran chimed in. "She's named the boy Cody."

"That's a nice name," I said, nodding appropriately.

Gran hummed, "Isn't it? You think we should take her something to say congratulations?"

"Um, we're not really close."

"That's not what I asked you, now is it?"

Jason chuckled and I flicked a bit of potato at him when Gran wasn't looking. It hit him right in the nose.

"Ow!"

Gran didn't bother turning around, having grown used to what we do when she's not looking.

"Sookie?"

"No."

"Good, so I'll make you a cake to take over to her. She's lucky. A perfectly healthy baby and early too. It's all anyone can ask, really."

Jason and I looked at each other from across the table. It wasn't anywhere near all anyone could ask, according to Jason's head.

Jason stayed until Gran had finished her cooking and grabbed a pecan pie (I may have hidden both apples) and one dish full of chicken to bring out to his truck. Gran asked if he wanted to go with her to Linda's but he said he had an early start tomorrow. It wasn't a lie, technically, but he was planning to spend the rest of the evening with someone named Cynthia.

I helped Gran load one of the pies and the rest of the food (minus some for us) in her car. "You'll be okay, driving all the way there on your own?"

"Of course I will, Sookie." She sounded a bit indignant that I would suggest she was anything other than one-hundred percent within her faculties. Truth be told, I noticed her hearing was not quite what it was a year ago. "You enjoy your night off. This lady may be old but she is still capable."

I raised my hands in surrender and backed off. "Okay." The security lights had turned on by now and we were both standing out in the cold circles of light. I hugged myself a little closer. I was still wearing my sweater but hadn't bothered to put my jacket back on when I was carrying the food out.

Waiting until she was gone, I skipped over to my car and took out the rest of the bags from the trunk and brought them inside, shivering a bit from the cold. I turned around to shut the door, taking a moment to scan the illuminated back yard. I was alone.

I put the t-shirts and sweatpants in the bottom drawer of my dresser and the shoes in my closet under a few other things. As I hung up the scarves on a hook behind my door, I had time to mull over the conversation I'd had on the payphone. There was something not quite right about how long she took to answer. As a distinguishing feature, I thought an accent might be something you mention first.

Deciding to take another look at the flyer, I glanced around. It wasn't in the kitchen either. That left it still in the car. I huffed, threw my coat on and jogged out to it. It was right where I left it, folded and on the passenger side. Grabbing it, I jogged back, eager to get out of the chill that had set in the air. I'd left the back door open since I was just going to the car but the hinges of the screen door will force it shut automatically if it isn't propped open. As I stepped over the threshold of the house, I didn't hear the screen door shut like it normally would. It didn't make any sound at all.

The barrier I forced myself to uphold in my mind had been in place and I hadn't heard anyone coming. Letting it down, I turned to face the vampire at my back.


	3. Promises To Keep

A/N: Charlaine Harris owns these wonderful characters. The insightful and lovely chicpea is the beta for this story. She has just posted a fantastic entry for the I Write the Songs contest and I highly recommend it to everyone!

I am also on wordpress, for those who would like to follow me there as well. finiteanarhcy . wordpress . com

Thank you all for your lovely reviews and alerts.

* * *

Chapter 3: Promises To Keep and Miles to Go Before We Sleep

"What are you doing here?" I asked the vampire. He was wearing the clothes I'd put on the step last night. They were a considerable improvement from the mud and blood covered things he'd had on before but these too were now coated a fine layer of dirt.

"You left these things on your step." He pointed to the clothes. "As if you knew I followed you."

Choosing not to answer his implied question, I asked another of my own. "You did follow me. Why?"

He took a step toward me and I backed up further into the house. He made no move to come inside. I waited to see if he would, but not so much as a fingertip passed the entryway.

"I mean you no harm," he said.

I gave him a questioning look and pulled down the side of the turtleneck to reveal the bite marks he'd left me with.

"If I wanted to, I could have taken you while you were outside with the old woman. Or on the second trip you made alone."

"Is that supposed to make me feel better?"

The hint of a smile crossed his face. "I could have taken off with the man I heard in your house, when he went to his vehicle. You would not have heard a thing." He said this all very matter-of-factly. I knew he could do it. "But I wanted to give you some advantage," he tapped the door frame, "to prove to that I mean no ill will."

I glanced at the doorframe. Various vampire lore passed through my head. I'd seen _Dracula_ – the Gary Oldman version and the Bela Lugosi one. Gran had a thing for Christopher Lee so I'd seen that version too. I've read the book too. _Blade_ went through my head, and _The Lost Boys_. Maybe Buffy would jump out of a tree with a stake? I discarded all my TV lore in favor of the pale haired creature standing in front of me. "You can't come in without an invitation?"

"Correct."

"Why not?"

He shrugged. "For the same reason I must sleep in the day and drink blood to survive."

I took the opportunity to study him a little closer in the better lighting. The blood was mostly gone from his face but his hair, though free of blood now, was a tangled mess. If he couldn't get inside to wash himself, he must have done it in the stream at the back end of the property. An involuntary shiver ran through me at the thought. This time of year, it would be frigid.

"You slept in the ground." I surmised, from the dirt. No abandoned houses for a few miles. Nothing safe enough to protect from the sun. "But then…I guess you don't breathe either."

He shook his head. "I do not. You still haven't answered my question. How did you know I followed you?"

I didn't want to tell him how I knew. That might end up being more trouble than it's worth. "My house is the only one along this road, unless you were going to find somewhere near old Jesse Compton's place to hunker down for the day. I didn't know if you would be heading closer into the main part of town. It seemed unlikely…given how you looked last night," I said, giving him another once over. His feet were in real bad shape. "I suppose I took a guess. Maybe I figured you wanted to be sure I didn't go screaming 'Vampires are real!' the second I ran into someone."

He smiled at that. Not a big smile but enough to tell me he found something I said amusing. "Thank you for the clothes." He seemed to accept my explanation. "It was very generous of you. Most people would not perform such a kindness. Especially after the circumstances of our meeting."

That's one way to put it. "I thought, maybe… you could use some kindness. Even if it's something as simple as giving you some old sweats. I answered your question, by the way. Now will you please answer mine?"

I saw amusement tickle his features. "You are very polite, aren't you?

"Not as much as my grandmother would like me to be."

The vampire, Eric, leaned against the doorframe. The thought of his name reminded me of the flyer I was still clutching. "As I said last night, I have been like this since the snow fell. You said that was nearly two weeks ago. In that time I found I was able to hypnotize every human I fed from. None remembered me for what I was after. Except you, you remember. You taste different from the others too. Better. Sweeter. I don't know what it means." His eyes roamed over my kitchen, memorizing everything. "But I believe that perhaps the key to undoing what was done to me is in someone unsusceptible to vampire magic."

I felt my eyes go wide. "I think you're maybe aiming a little too high, there."

"Am I?" He was trying again.

A million spiders felt like they were crawling all over my head. I took another step back. "Stop it." I fought the urge to touch my head and failed. Nothing there except my hair. "I don't know what help I can be to you. I don't know any other vampires. Maybe I would never have known I was immune to whatever you were trying to do if you hadn't come along."

"Don't you see? Now I know no other vampire, should you or I come across one, can tamper with you. They cannot force your compliance in anything." His voice filled with awe and genuine astonishment. His face, for a moment became as open as a child's. "I don't have to hypnotize you to stand still or speak with you. We can speak and you do not go running into the night."

That's because you'd probably catch me before I got ten feet. I did count it as a blessing. Maybe a formerly unknown part of the quirk I have. "Whatever it is that keeps me immune to what you can do, I'm glad it does. I want to remember." Remember that if telepaths and vampires were real, other things had to be real too.

"I am too."

The heat was filtering out of the open doorway and a wind had picked up, pushing cold air into the house. The weather this winter has been even sharper than normal. It's rare for winters here to get temperatures below the low forties. This year, and particularly the last couple of weeks have been suffering a progressively worse cold snap and temperatures went down below freezing on several occasions.

"You said you didn't know your name last night. Or anything really about who you are." I unfolded the flyer. "I found something."

He pushed off the doorframe and stood straight. "Tell me."

"You are, apparently, being searched for." I said, wriggling the paper a bit. "Your name is Eric Northman."

"Eric Northman," he repeated, trying out his own name as if it was a foreign kind of food.

"This flyer describes your features. It says you're a 'prominent member of the Shreveport business community.' I guess that's where you're from?" I asked, looking up at him.

He shrugged.

I turned and walked to the wall where our phone was. It was an older model, with a long cord that attached to the wall. A big stool sat underneath it. Next to it, in the lower cabinet was a _Yellow Pages_ and _White Pages_. I pulled out the _White Pages_.

"What are you doing?" He asked.

"I'm going to see if you're listed."

"Listed?"

"In the phone book."

He said nothing as I placed the book down on top of the flyer and started flipping through the pages. There weren't too many "Northmans" listed. "I'll be damned."

"What is it?" Eric was growing impatient.

"You're here." I was in disbelief. There was a vampire in the phone book. "Your name, phone number and address. It's all here." That seemed…dangerous. But maybe vampires didn't use the phone books like regular folks. Or they're given those spontaneous didactic memories when they become vampires. That could be useful. But still, that information is out there for anyone. Maybe he didn't know that it just takes a call to get yourself unlisted.

"Show me." He was leaning heavily against the door. Whatever magical force kept him out was doing a fine job.

I walked over to the door until I was about three feet away and held up the book. "Do you see it?"

"You can come closer, woman. I won't bite."

I felt my head tilt and eyebrows go up. "Really?"

"Promise." Then he grinned. With lots of teeth and without the fangs. It was…wow. Disarming. Did he know he could do that?

"It's Sookie, by the way." I moved closer and held the book up.

"What?"

"My name. Sookie Stackhouse."

"Thank you, Sookie." He said, but I couldn't see him with the book held in front of me like it was.

"For what?" I said, lowering it.

"Helping me."

We had a little staring contest going between us. I broke it when a strong gust of wind flooded in and I shivered. I hope I lived not to regret what I was about to do.

"If I invite you in, you promise you won't try to bite me?"

Eric looked surprised. "I promise."

"And you won't try to hurt me?"

"You have my word."

I bit my lip. What was that worth? The word of a vampire? "Can I take back my invitation?"

"I don't know. You can try. See what happens."

Tentatively, I said it. "I invite you in." I watched as he slowly put one dirty foot through the threshold, followed by the other. He was inside. "I rescind my invitation." He looked almost a little wobbly as he abruptly turned around and walked back out. On the porch he stood, looking irritated and perturbed.

"It works," he said.

"Yes, it does." I had the strong urge to laugh at his forced exit but I reined it in. "Please, come in, again." Just like before, he entered the house tentatively, before closing the door. "Please, sit." I waved past me, indicating the large table and chairs where Gran and I had the majority of our meals. I put the phone book down, open, on top of it.

He walked slowly to the table and sat down. There was something off in his walk. It was slight but he favored one side. Looking down, his feet left a trail of dirt and…I crouched. The light shined on it. Yep, blood. When I looked back at him, the light of the kitchen showed his skin even whiter than I thought, practically bluish in cast. If he was freezing, he said nothing of it, or made any physical indication that he was cold.

"Your feet," I said. "Why didn't you mention anything?"

He cast his eyes down toward his very large, grime covered feet. "I did not come here because my feet hurt. I can take care of them later." I shook my head. Sometimes, men were all the same. No, it doesn't hurt. Don't pay attention to the fingertip I just nipped off. I'd rather bleed all over the counter than admit I'm in pain.

"No, you made that clear. You came here because I'm the only person you met who cannot be tampered with by vampire hypnosis." I cleaned up the trail of footprints with a paper towel.

"I was not expecting an invitation into your home." He said, quietly.

I started the hot water running in the sink and gave it a minute to warm up. "I wasn't expecting to give one," I said to the sink.

A moment of quiet passed while I filled up a small pan with the hot water. I wasn't going to let him walk anywhere leaving a trail of dirty footprints behind him. There were also the cuts to look at. I knew he healed fast, from what he told me about the wolves, but I wanted to look at them anyway. I still didn't get it. How do you bleed when the heart isn't pumping blood?

"We must go there." He said, startling me out of my thoughts.

"Where?" I brought the pan over, with some towels, to where he sat and placed it on the floor. "Roll your pants legs up."

"Here," he said, point to the address in the phone book. "If this is my home, there might be information there. You will take me there."

"Oh, _I will_, will I?" I asked, letting my ire show. "_I _don't think so. Now. Pants legs. Up."

With an undignified expression he wrenched the legs of his sweats up and gingerly put his feet in the water. I watched his expression as he cringed from the sudden change.

"First off, _you_ are in no position to make demands right now." I eyed him up and down and he had the sense to look suitably abashed. "And second, that is just not a good idea." I walked back to where I left the flyer on the counter top and brought it over to him. "See. People are looking for you. And that," I pointed to the $50,000 figure, "is a very big sum around here. Too big."

"Someone must want to find me very badly," he said, picking up the flyer. Meanwhile, I bent down with a washcloth to get a look at his feet. Small pebbles were imbedded in the cuts. I watched in amazement as one by one they were pushed out of his foot by the healing skin. They must have been constantly forced back in as he walked, and gathered new ones. Once the dirt was cleaned off it was easier to see where the damage lay.

"I think some of your skin froze. I don't know what to do." Frostbite wasn't exactly common in Louisiana.

Eric lifted each foot up one by one to get a look at the underside. "Do you have a sharp knife?"

I felt my eyes grow wide. "No…you can't do that."

"The skin will regrow. I know this."

I felt my stomach churn at the thought as I went for one of the utensil drawers. I pulled out an old boning knife that didn't see much use anymore and the steel sharpener. The sound the blade made as I sharpened it made me think of preparing to cut steaks.

He took the knife when I handed it to him and got right down to business. I faced the window over the sink, deciding not to watch. The sounds of pain were there as he cut, but they were muted and I could tell he was trying to be as quiet about it as possible.

"You may turn around now."

I did, and was glad to see whatever bits of flesh he cut off were ensconced in a lump in one of the towels. I took the bloody knife and let water run over it in the sink while I dumped the…skin, towel and all, in the trash. Ewh. "They're okay now?"

"They will be soon." He had propped them up on one of the empty chairs, one of the towels underneath them. I went to grab the pan of water to empty it, but Eric stopped me with a hand on my arm. "It can wait. Please sit down with me."

I took the chair across the table from him and watched in amazement as the skin on his feet began to slowly knit itself together.

"You say this is a lot of money." He indicated the flyer. "Yet you haven't mentioned anything about getting this reward for yourself, since you know where I am."

"I was suspicious," I told him, "when I saw it. Like I said, it's a lot of money. More than most people make around here in a year. I did call them to find out about you." I noticed Eric lean forward then.

"You told them where I was?"

"No. I said I saw you in Alexandria." When a confused look passed over his face, I clarified. "It's a city a few hours south of here, bigger than Shreveport. I called during the day, so whoever is looking for you, at least, whoever put these up," I tapped the flyer, "they aren't vampires. And it is definitely a 'they.' I do think they know what you are, though."

Eric sat back, processing the information.

"They pretended to be your family looking for you. The way they said it…I knew it was off. And the woman described the same clothes you were wearing when I found you, so she had to be there when this," I made a sort of all-encompassing gesture at him, "happened."

"Something must have gone wrong."

As in, there was a way this could have been caused right? "What do you mean?"

"I'm here. Now. With you. I've been wandering for the last two weeks, not knowing where to go, running through the woods and roads. I felt like I've been searching and I don't know what for. I cannot trust another vampire in this state I'm in even though I need to find one. I am being hunted by wolves that turn into men. I –"

"Wait, what? Back up. Wolves that turn into men?"

"Yes. They are…" he searched for the word, "Werewolves."

I wanted to do one of those dramatic sit downs when someone reveals something huge. I was already sitting though, so I didn't do that. But, werewolves? What was next? Zombies? "What would werewolves want with you?"

"I don't know. I'll ask if I fight one again. It was a good fight. Difficult, because I was outnumbered, but there is nothing like the thrill of a fight." Eric sounded practically wistful.

"So, werewolves are chasing you. Some people in Shreveport want to find you, and you have no idea why."

"No. I wish I did." In his disheveled state, with his sad blue eyes, Eric looked completely forlorn as his gaze kept passing between the phone book and the flyer.

We sat like that, quietly, for a minute. My night had taken a turn for the completely bizarre.

"Could the werewolves and the people who put up the signs be connected?" I didn't expect an actual answer and wasn't surprised when I didn't get one. Were they normal people the rest of the time? Did they turn into wolves at a full moon?

"Were they _actual _wolves that attacked you? Or kind of, half man, type wolves?"

"Actual wolves, running on four legs."

"Wow." I was completely at sea.

"We should go to my house," he said, changing the subject. Thankfully, he wasn't demanding it anymore.

"We don't know who might be waiting there for you."

"Maybe no one is there."

"And maybe we'll run into those werewolves you so loved to fight."

"I can go on my own and find out." He stood up.

Our eyes met when I craned my neck up to see the top of his tall frame. "You know how to get there?"

He had nothing to say to that and sat back down. That's right, no charging off on a white steed into battle just yet.

This is not my brightest idea. "I can drive by during the day, see if anyone is maybe parked near your house, or watching it." I figured I could check the minds of people nearby. Someone might have a thought or two about the enigma of Eric Northman. I had to admit, it was kind of exciting. I'd never used my ability in such an active way before. "I have a dinner shift to work tomorrow but if I don't see anything, I could bring you there tomorrow night, after work."

Eric brightened considerably. "This is good. I like the way you think, Sookie Stackhouse."

"Okay," I said. "We're gonna figure this out. But first – you need a shower."

He looked down at himself. "Yes. A shower would be good."

"Follow me." I led him to the bathroom at the end of the hall and showed him where everything was so he could get clean.

In my room, I took out one of the t-shirts I'd bought earlier and the sweatpants, ripping off their tags. Oh…I'd forgotten underwear. And socks. Damn. Oh, well. Nothing to do about it now. I took the clothes and the shoes from where I'd left them and knocked on the bathroom door.

"I brought you something clean," I said. "I can throw the…oh."

Eric was definitely clean now. Very, very, clean. Kind of shiny too. His hair, devoid of blood and dirt was quite stunning. So was his completely wonderful backside.

"Sookie?"

"Hm?" I was staring and now suitably embarrassed. "Sorry! I didn't mean to walk in on you like that! I thought you'd have the curtain pulled across. I'll just, um…go. Now." I turned, dropped the clothes on the sink and walked out.

It wasn't like I'd never seen a naked man before. Just not so…up close and…perfect. To be honest, what no one wanted to know was, I've seen most of the town naked at one point or another. They all think of themselves, of what their bodies look like or they think of their spouses, or whoever they are seeing at the time, or on the side. Some see distorted images of themselves – lots of women think they're fatter than they really are and it reflects in the mental image they have of themselves. And guys, they're just as insecure. Some see themselves as much better looking than they actually are too. Poor Jane Bodehouse came to mind.

But who was I kidding; I'm a twenty-one year old virgin, three years out of high school. There are no men in my life. Prom with J.B. had been hard enough.

I went into the kitchen to empty out the pan of now cold, brownish water. Another idea came to me when I spotted Gran's old hammer under the sink with a huge tin of nails when I went to put the pan away.

"Sookie."

I looked up. Eric was standing in the kitchen with wet hair and wearing the clothes I'd given him. The shoes too. I gave a startled laugh. "You look like an advertisement for sleepwear in the JCPenny catalogue."

Confusion etched his features. "The what?"

"Oh, nevermind." He moved quickly over to me and completely invaded my personal space, startling me out of my amusement. I guess his feet were feeling better. "Eric, I – "

He breathed in along my neck. "I smell like you now. Like sweet things." A finger ran down my neck. Was this payback for walking in on him?

I shut my eyes. "You promised, remember?" When I opened them again Eric was standing a few feet away.

"Of course I remember. You simply smell good, Sookie."

I sighed. "I'm sorry I walked in on you."

He grinned. "You can walk in on me whenever you like. Maybe, I can even do the same to you." His eyes roamed over me and I suddenly felt like it _was_ me who'd been seen naked.

"Ah, no. I'm good." The shower seemed to lift more than just his spirits.

There was another moment of pure, unadulterated staring before he asked, "What is all this?" Indicating the nails and hammer.

"I think I know of a better place for you to sleep than in the ground. Come on." I grabbed my coat and scarf.

About thirty minutes later we pulled into a short driveway.

"What is this place?" Eric asked, stepping out of the car.

"It's the only place I know for sure where no one would come looking around. It burned down a few years ago, but I think there are still a few parts that are safe." We were on Parish road 34, not too far from Arlene's trailer, but far enough to not be seen. I popped the trunk. "Give me a hand here, please?"

We'd brought the blanket I'd lent him last night, which had been placed on the porch steps, some old rags Gran used for cleaning in case any cracks needed small coverings, candles, and a flashlight for me. Eric went first, stepping carefully to make sure the floor could hold his weight. When he was sure it could, he beckoned me up.

Carefully, we weaved our way through the charred rooms, the flashlight bobbing in front of me. One of the rooms in the back was the least damaged. The problem with it, unfortunately was that it had two windows.

"This will do," he said and disappeared in a flash.

"Hey, wait!"

There was a sudden crashing and cracking from another part of the house and I ran out of the room. When I found him, Eric had pulled up a number of the floorboards from another room. The edges were sharp, jagged and splintered. It was another reminder of how strong Eric is. I handed him the nails one by one as he hammered in the boards to cover the windows. Together we draped the rags over any gaps.

"I need to be sure no light gets through."

"I'll go around the side."

Carefully, with the flashlight in front of me, I got around to the side of the house and shone it around the windows and corners.

I gasped when Eric showed up suddenly in front of me and I took a step back. "Please don't do that."

"It's perfect." He said. "It will protect me during the day and no one will know where I am." There was a distinct change in the demeanor from the near feral state I found Eric in the night before.

"I'm glad." I had to say, even though he was a vampire, this is the nicest time I've had with someone in ages. No intruding thoughts or images; the only feelings and emotions I was getting were the ones coming right from his face. This was not so bad at all.

"I owe you a great debt for this. When I am entirely myself again, I will see to it that your kindness is not forgotten."


	4. You Are Not The Hunter

A/N: Apologies for this not being up sooner. I am aiming for updates around every Monday/Tuesday.

So there is this contest going on right now. Northwoman has put together the "I Write the Songs" contest for the second time now. There were 25 entries total and right now there is a public vote going on for the entries that made it to the top 10. I've entered and you can check out my entry in my profile.

Muchas gracias to my fab beta chicpea who catches all my mistakes. She also has a wonderful story entered into the "I Write the Songs" contest called "25 to Life" and if you haven't read it yet, head on over to her page and get on it!

Voting can be done on the I Write The Songs Profile page. Both Chicpea and I have made it into the top 10.

* * *

Chapter 4: You are not the hunter. You are the lamb.

I wanted to tell him that he didn't owe me anything. It felt nice being needed; helpful even, to someone who was so clearly lost. At least I'm sticking to my New Year's resolution so far.

We started back to my car, leaving everything behind except the flashlight I was using.

"Do I have to stay here for the rest of the night?" he asked, when I opened the driver's side door. The moon was only a sliver in the night sky and it was difficult to meld the hulking figure with the timidly voiced question. The feral danger so plain on his face yesterday felt like a shadow tonight.

"Not if you don't want to."

We drove back mostly in silence, lost each to our own thoughts when an idea came to me.

"I suppose you're going to need blood again soon?"

Startled, he replied, "Yes…I will need blood soon. Healing earlier took some of my energy." He gave me a quizzical look. "Are you offering?"

"Ah, no. No…" No. Not after last night. "I was just thinking that you probably shouldn't be doing a lot of wandering around. That flyer I showed you was tacked up to the WalMart bulletin board. Lots of people from around here shop there and might have seen it. And I'm betting it's not the only flyer around."

"You are telling me to use discretion when I hunt."

"Um, yes. When you…hunt." I answered with trepidation.

That basically killed anything else I'd wanted to say. I felt like a gazelle, wary that a lion was near. Except I was not nearly as fast as a gazelle. I was more like that goat tethered to the pole in _Jurassic Park_.

"You take issue with it," he said as we pulled into my bumpy driveway.

"With what?"

"My drinking blood."

"Well, yeah. You drink from people. It's hard not to take some issue with that. Considering, I was one of the people – very unwilling people." I parked my car where it had been before. Gran wasn't back yet, and probably wouldn't be for a while yet. "You've just said it. You hunt. For people. We're your food." I turned in my seat to look at him.

"It is what I need to survive. But I know you are not just food for hungry vampires. We are…cut from the same cloth, vampires and humans. I was human once. I may not remember the details of my life but I know this fact is true when I think on it. Vampires feed off humans, yes, but we can love them too. We lay with them and we speak with them. You can hardly say the same of the cow or pheasant."

Eric stared at me with a heated expression on his face. The silence stretched until distantly, I heard the phone inside the house begin to ring. I turned and was surprised to see small flakes of snow had started to fall. There was so much tension in the car you could cut it with a knife. A hand on my knee made me jump, breaking it. I looked at his large hand on me and closed my eyes for a moment. Nothing. No unwanted thoughts or images. No emotions. It felt nice to be touched. I put my hand on top of his; now without any clothing between the skin. I've been wondering for so long if I'd ever meet someone who could touch me without my hearing them.

It was also a little frightening that someone was a vampire.

"Phone's ringing," I said and scrambled out of the car and up to porch.

He was behind me in an instant, following me into the house. It was Gran calling. She decided to cut her visit with Linda short since she had just seen the weather report on the news telling people a quick moving storm was on its way.

"She'll be back in about an hour or so." I said, turning away from where the phone was perched. "So you'll have to – "

He was _right_ there. I stifled a gasp. "Please stop doing that." He grinned. He enjoyed surprising me. "It's not funny."

"I wish to know more about you."

"Like what?" I asked, moving around him to copy the address out of the phone book and onto the flyer. I folded it back up and put it in my pocket before putting the phone book away.

"About you. About your life. I'd like to know what makes a young woman stop for man in the middle of the road. A woman all alone. In the middle of the night."

I laughed. "I wasn't going to drive over you."

"Which I'm glad for," he said, following me out to the living room.

"My life isn't all that interesting really."

"What were you doing out so late in the night?" We sat down on the couch, facing each other. It was easier, here with more space than in the car.

"Working," I said. "I'm a barmaid."

"Where is the man of your house to provide for you?" This vampire was beginning to show his age. I imagined he was human well before things like women's liberation and the right to vote.

"I take care of my house," I told him, pausing. "Technically, it's my grandmother's house. I live with her and help her out when she needs it." Not that she would ever admit to needing help.

"The man I saw leaving? He is a relation, is he not? I heard you speaking when I was outside. Why does he not live here and care for you?" Cut right to the quick, why don't you?

I shifted. "Jason, he is my brother but he lives in our parents' house. My parents died when we were kids but Gran kept the house all these years. Jason moved out there a few years ago when he didn't want to live with Gran and me anymore, since he was 'grown man.'"

"A grown man would not shirk the responsibilities of providing for his family."

Tell me about it. I sighed. "Things are different today. Jason's not much for responsibility. I have to remind him to do things around here; if something is broken or Gran needs something I can't do. But why am I talking about this? You have enough problems of your own. You don't need to hear about mine. Besides, Jason's got his own life to worry about. Women provide for themselves today." I was not about to go down the road of who provides for whom. I didn't need people feeling sad for me.

It was wonderful not knowing if he did feel sad for me. He could be feeling nothing at all. He could be thinking about tax law for all I knew.

We spoke a little more about my life. I told him about my work in Merlotte's, some of the people in town, my Gran, and Aunt Linda's cancer. I told him a little more about Jason.

The house had gotten chilly and I got up to raise the thermostat. "What about your friends?" he asked when I sat back down.

"Well there's Tara. She works in a dress shop not too far from here. And there's Arlene." He'd moved closer to me during or conversation. I told him a little about each of them; about Tara when she would come here, and Arlene's little kids. Eric's face was stoic about the both of them and I was glad to not know if he was passing some kind of judgment on my friend choices.

"She and you exchange times of work, but only if you agree to do something else for her? How is that a good arrangement?" he asked of Arlene, disbelief written on his features.

"I know it's inconvenient for her because she has children to work around," I said, a bit defensively.

"So she uses these children as a way of obtaining favors." He was indulging my belief in Arlene's friendship. He didn't say it, and I didn't hear it but it was clear what he thought of her.

"Arlene has always been," I searched for the right word. She was a sweet woman who loved her babies. "Kind to me."

Before I could comment further, Eric spun around to face the door. "Someone's coming."

"I don't hear anything." Moving to the window, I could just make out headlights at the turn off for our driveway. There was a fine dusting of snow on the ground but that was all, for now. "It's my Gran. I don't think it's a good idea for her to see you here right now. It would be impossible to explain this situation to her." He was in front of me again when I turned around. I didn't jump this time, at least. "What did I say?" I sounded far too much like Gran just then. "Don't do that!"

Eric grinned. "I will be waiting for you tomorrow night." And before I could say anything, he grabbed my chin, kissed my forehead and was out the front door.

"Okay," I said, breathlessly.

I went to see if Gran had any things she needed taking in. She chattered for a good fifteen minutes about the brief snow fall and how Aunt Linda was doing, which was not great. The chemo was taking its toll and she promised Linda she would be back tomorrow.

I had settled in to watch a movie some time later when Gran called me from the hall.

"Sookie," she said "why are there dirty clothes and towels on the bathroom floor?"

Crap. "Um…" I went in and grabbed everything up. "I have no idea," and walked out with them to the washer.

The next day I was up early and out the door after breakfast. I had my scarf, hat and gloves all ready to go. I didn't like the idea of lying to Gran but I didn't want her to not know where I was going either in case something happened, so I settled for a half truth. I told her I was going to Shreveport to run an errand, which was technically true, just not for whom or why, and that I should be back by three to change for work. So if anything were to happen, Gran would know when to expect me. Not that I expected anything to happen. Nope. Because I was going to hopefully not leave my car.

It took me longer than anticipated to get there, being an area of Shreveport I wasn't familiar with. It was a wealthy neighborhood and when I finally reached the right street, I found a long row of identical ranch style houses. Each lawn had the same amount of space, with grass cut to the same height. I drove slowly; most of the houses had two car garages and fenced in porches. Talk about blending in. I doubted any of Eric's neighbors ever suspected they were living next to a vampire. Eric's was the last house on the dead-end street.

I u-turned and drove around the block once. Most driveways were empty and I assumed people were off at work. This wasn't the kind of neighborhood where people were employed as shift workers. I guess that might make Eric's nocturnal hours more noticeable after all.

There were cars parked in the street and I parked a little ways down from his house between two of them to let my guard down. This was something I'd never done before; actually listening and trying to read people. I was both nervous and excited.

Eric's house was empty. Nary a mind nor void anywhere. There were a few people home in the houses along his block, despite the cars being gone, but they were all thinking your standard thoughts: things to do, kids, what's on TV later.

It was too much to hope I'd catch anyone thinking actively about Eric in any capacity. Ten minutes passed. Then twenty. An hour dragged by. People drove past me, or walked down the block, but it didn't seem like anyone was actively watching the house or waiting to see if someone else would be coming by. I figured if there were, they'd be looking for someone like me, since no vampires would be out in the daytime.

Soon I was going on ninety minutes. God, I was bored. And my butt was going numb. This spying stuff really isn't so hot. I should have some coffee and donuts with me.

I got out of the car and started walking. I paced up and down the street and if anyone looked, I was just going for a stroll. The weather had only marginally improved. It was cold; above freezing at least, because the dusting of snow on the lawns had melted in patches. The sky was overcast, and it looked like more was on its way.

I kept my mind open as I sprinted up Eric's drive and around to the back of his house. There was a sizable backyard, which was tastefully landscaped with large hedges for privacy. There was a wood fenced back porch leading to the back door. I already knew it would be locked, but I tried it anyway. I reminded myself how I got into this weird situation. Yes, a vampire followed me home, but I would not be doing any breaking or entering.

There was no key above the doorframe, or under any of the decorative potted plants along the porch's railing.

If I was a vampire who locked himself out of his house, where would I put a spare key?

I had no idea.

It wasn't under any rocks or by any shrubbery. Maybe he'd leave it with a neighbor? The high hedges concealed the fence that bordered his property but with a little maneuvering, I was able to see into the next yard. It was practically identical in size but with much more taking up the space. There was a large outdoor table with chairs and an umbrella, one of those fancy barbeques that cost close to a thousand dollars, a paved stone path that led to a small garden in the back with a water fountain treatment and shed located at the other end of the yard.

Too risky. It would be easy for someone to overturn a stone or knock over a plant. If the neighbor found the key and realized it wasn't for their house, they might just toss them.

I turned around Eric's empty yard in a full circle. Vampires were agile. And fast. I'd learned at much since I'd met one. I looked up his porch. It was covered by an attached roof.

You couldn't put it under the azaleas, could you? No, you couldn't.

I climbed up the porch railing at edge where it met the house. There was a gutter running down the side of the house and I gripped it as high up as I could, testing my weight to see if it would hold me. Hauling myself up, my boots hugged where the gutter was bolted in. I heard the metal start to creak and grown. Gripping the roof's edge, I made the jump. Pulling at the shingles, I hauled my lower half over the roof. There was a huffing noise as I lay back on the roof. It was me. I was going to be really annoyed if it wasn't up here. But it was. A set of keys sat on top of a window frame easily out of sight.

Getting down proved to be a little easier; I held on to the roof's edge and swung down to the porch railing.

Once back on the porch I did a little victory dance. Light from the door told me I'd entered a kitchen but it was otherwise completely dark inside. Nothing alerted me to any lurking minds so I risked turning on a light and shut the door.

The kitchen was perfectly neat, nothing out of place and no dishes in the sink. It was very modern, new and most likely never used.

I peeked in some of the drawers and cabinets. There was a set of silverware, some dishes and a handful of pots and pans. There was a microwave set in a built-in space above one of the counters.

So, I guess he had the occasional visitor.

The refrigerator had a few frozen meals in the freezer, a gallon of orange juice and inside a small lunch pack cooler, several bags of blood.

From the kitchen I entered a dining area, with a lovely and ornate looking table in dark wood, which also probably didn't see much use. The walls were a vivid robin's egg blue with light colored cabinets at each end of the space. The room fed into the living space, which had a different shade of blue and much more varied color in the furniture. This is a beautiful home.

Eric was a man who liked color. Interesting.

Everything was very neat and ordered. Nothing looked like it was out of place. Ornamental pieces adorned the coffee table and the shelves of the entertainment center. Prints hung on the walls. It almost looked more like a display home if it wasn't for the eclectic taste in furniture, which was all big, like him, and the recently washed laundry that I'd founding sitting in a small laundry room. The clothes didn't have that just out of the wash smell though, and I guessed it was one of the last things he had done before this mess had started. It tickled me a little, just knowing that even vampires have to do laundry.

I found his bedroom, which had several locks on the inside of the door and windows that had been shuttered and locked up tight, with heavy, long curtains over them. It was a little claustrophobic, once there were no windows in a room.

It was in his office where I found something useful. There was a typewriter on the desk and it was an old fashioned one too. I'd bet it would make some antique dealer's day. Gran had one like it once, many years ago. It had been a gift by someone but it never saw much use and eventually she had donated it.

I sat in the very large chair, feeling quite small and spent some time looking through the desk drawers. What I found told me that Eric was indeed a very prominent member of the Shreveport community – one nobody had probably ever heard of. He owned several small businesses; a rental management company, a tattoo parlor, he was a partner in two nightclubs, and if I was reading the paperwork right, he had some involvement in the casinos in Bosier City. All the documents were summarized figures, with monthly totals. There was a firm name in the upper right corners. These had to be sent by whoever does the books for these businesses. He had to have people who saw to the management of all these places. There just weren't enough hours in the day, let alone the night.

Whoever did this to Eric knew he had some business and financial clout. Certainly more than the fifty thousand being offered just to get him back.

There was more; a ledger with names written in a crabbed handwriting. Numbers were written for some of the names, or a type of service. These were all totaled by month and divided. There were a lot of abbreviations and initials I didn't understand. A5. Temp. Res. Qu. Some entries had the names of businesses following them and a figure below that. I kept flipping through the pages. There were a lot of things written in a different language. Many letters were runic. In high school our English teacher had us read _Beowulf._ We spent a few weeks on it, including the history behind it and the history of the Anglo-Saxon it was originally written in. Some of these letters looked like that.

These were other vampires and they all paid Eric money. I closed the book and sat back. I was having one of those moments of clarity, followed quickly by a moment of "oh, shit." There was another notebook in the drawer which held names too. These were listed only once with various things written by them. Some had figures, some had other names. There were more abbreviations and runic letters.

Eric was a vampire mobster and someone had tried to take him out.

I knew what I should do. I should put all these papers back where I found them, put his chair back where it was, lock the door up, put the keys back where they were and drive back to Bon Temps like I didn't find any of this. But then what? There would be a vampire waiting to know what I'd found come nightfall. And I could tell him that I'd found nothing and there was nothing more I could do. Unfortunately for me, it was only a fifty-fifty shot of him actually leaving. Then he'd have to fend for himself, without a memory. Or, maybe he could start from scratch and build a new life – unlife, for himself. This was one of those rock and a hard place moments.

It was so nice being able to talk to someone, even about mundane things, and not know if they're really thinking about football games or what I look like without my shirt on, but was it worth getting involved with someone so potentially dangerous? I didn't know. Speaking with Eric made me feel normal. Not weird or crazy, like so many people in Bon Temps thought I was, and not someone to be used when my ability provided a convenience.

So I could help him…and maybe if he gets his memory back or finds out who did this to him I'll never see him again. "Or I'll sleep with the fishes," I said to myself and sniggered.

I found a planner with several phone numbers in it: the direct numbers to each of his businesses, extensions for people that worked there, home numbers for the same people. Numbers for people all over the state, in Dallas, Jackson…I recognized the area codes. Numbers for people in many different states. There were a few appointments penciled in on various dates. Unfortunately, nothing that said "meeting with bad guys who probably want to kill me."

The addresses of his businesses were listed on the papers with the firm logo. Since no one seemed to know where Eric lived, or at least, no one who did this to him, I'd try somewhere else. I put everything back where I found it, except for the papers that had the addresses. I was going to leave everything as I found it but I stopped again at the laundry room. I grabbed what was there, which was a bit of everything, pants, shirts, socks and underwear and headed for the kitchen. It was behind the door that I noticed a pair of boots. I took those too and as I was stepping out the door I thought of the blood in the fridge. Would it still be good? I didn't know but I grabbed the cooler anyway and locked the door behind me.

Back in my car, the street map told me the closest one of his businesses was the rental management company. The address had a suite number though, telling me it was in an office building. That meant too many minds to sift through and not knowing which ones were actually working for him or knew who he was. It would be too difficult to figure out from so far away.

The tattoo parlor was closer to the river. I thought that might be my best shot since it was at street level and there was a constant stream of people going in and out. The neighborhood had heavier traffic and more people out on the street. I parked across the street and two shops down.

Lowering my shields like this, when no one was trying to talk to me, was easier. I could concentrate on just what I heard in my head. There were a few people inside the parlor getting tattoos. Their minds flip-flopped between a sort of Zen-like tranquility and brief bouts of pain when the needle went over something sensitive. That was fascinating. I've heard about athletes who "get into the zone." This might be what they were talking about. The tattooists were all very focused on what they were doing and not thinking of anything else. One person was working on the sketch of a tattoo for someone. The person it was for was very particular. None of them were actively thinking of anything that would be useful.

I waited for about twenty minutes before thinking up something to try and get minds moving in a different direction. I got out of the car and headed toward the shop. My mind wandered to the people nearby but I didn't sense anything out of the ordinary. There were three people sitting in a car a few shops down from the parlor that I was having trouble reading. Their minds felt like the one I'd touched in WalMart, swirly, tangled and hard to read. I focused on them and watched two, a woman and a man, get out of the car. They were speaking rapidly to each other but I couldn't get anything from them except ill intent. I froze where I was and pretended to look at a sign on the street pole. They headed into the tattoo parlor.

Focusing, I brought my concentration back to inside and listened. All the artists had stopped what they were doing and I could see the couple clearly through the minds' eyes of the people there. They were looking for Eric Northman. I recognized her voice. It was the woman I'd spoken to on the phone. The guy behind the counter said he didn't know where he was. One of others said he only comes in once every week or two.

Slowly, I turned and decided to walk back to my car. It was an effort not to run. The woman was very angry. I could feel it. Feel her rage. I watched her turn toward the closed shop door then narrow her eyes at all the people watching her. She knew.

I felt my heart rate speed up. She knew I had touched her mind. I jumped back to focus on the man behind the counter.

The woman looked to her partner and back to everyone else in the room. "We have a message for Eric Northman."

In a state of confusion, they all watched the woman and man strip off their clothes. The woman smiled, but it looked more like a snarl. In moments the two fell to the ground as their forms began to move and shift. Everyone got up and moved back. There was a bat under the counter; I pulled that from the counter guy's mind. It wasn't going to do him much good.

They were werewolves. I watched in horror as the wolves leapt up and onto the people inside.

I knew I was crying. There was nothing I could do. I put my shaking hand to the ignition and started the car.


	5. Manipulators and Outcome Engineers

A/N: I've gotten a few questions from some of my guest reviewers. First - thanks everyone who is taking the time to review after you've read. It makes me smile. That being said, I have been trying to make more of an effort to reply to all of you. Sometimes that works, sometimes not. But when you leave a guest review, I can't reply if you ask questions. So here are some brief answers:

1. This follows canon as far as placement of characters goes. I.E. Linda has cancer, Hadley has run off, Pam is in Minnesota, doing whatever she did there. Sookie has no idea who Pam is and for the time being, neither does Eric.

2. I do not use True Blood characters or plot lines. Appius Livius Ocella _is _Eric's maker. Godric/Godfrey is as he is in SVM, a child murder/rapist slowly growing tired of his ways somewhere in the greater 48 states.

3. Hallow was leaving a very visible and large message for Eric and his people by attacking his employees in the middle of the day and leaving it grisly, rather than using magic.

4. Smells wash off when people take showers.

I think that's it for now. Charlaine Harris owns these characters and Chicpea is a supercalifragilisticexpialid ocious beta. Go check out her stories.

Today is the ***last*** day to vote in the "I Write the Songs" contest. If you have not voted, please, please go read and vote. The stories are excellent! The poll is at the top of the IWTS profile. www . fanfiction u/2491610/I_Write_The_Songs#

* * *

Chapter 5: Manipulators and Outcome Engineers

I could read their fear. Their terror overwhelmed me. It was paralyzing and suffocating and I knew I was hyperventilating as I started the car. I tried to close my mind off but it was too much when the werewolves started ripping into flesh.

I sped off as fast as I could, driving on auto-pilot. Time passed, but if you asked me how much, I couldn't say. Eventually found myself passing a JCPenney. I pulled into the large lot, which wasn't very full, it being the middle of a workday, and parked near the entrance. I took a moment to compose myself.

There was nothing I could have done. Nothing. I kept chanting it to myself as I checked my face in the rearview mirror and got out to walk inside the store. Thoughts bombarded me with my measly mental barriers down. I breezed right by the security guy who was giving me a funny look. I followed the signs toward customer service and returns. On the wall next to the counter was a short row of pay phones. I called the police and told them some people had walked into the tattoo parlor and went crazy. Employees might be dead and they should go there as soon as possible. When the dispatcher started asking for personal information, I hung up. Leaning on the phone, I slowly brought the little wall up in my head to block everything out. It was hard, and the adrenaline that coursed through me as I sped away was gone.

The security guard watched me as I walked toward him and out the exit. I wanted to tell him it's rude to stare.

On the ride back I turned up the radio and sang "Under Pressure" as loud as I could. The radio was teasing me. I kept singing all the way home and was glad no one was around to hear it.

It was about two-thirty when I finally pulled into the driveway. Gran was in the living room with Tina curled up beside her.

"Sookie? Is that you?" She called. Her voice was worried. Gran was perched in her chair with the TV on. She got up as soon as I walked in and hugged me.

"Um. Everything okay here?"

"Oh, thank heavens you're alright. I was getting ready to visit Linda when I got a call from Everlee to turn on the news. I didn't know what part of Shreveport you'd gone too."

I felt surprise creep into my face. "Why…" I turned to the TV to see the breaking news headline on the local channel. Oh…no. "Wow." I took off my hat, coat and gloves and went to hang them by the door. I almost took the scarf off too and caught myself. I wrapped it around my neck in an attempt at a fashion statement. It was very European.

"Can you believe it? One person was rushed to the hospital but they're saying there are more inside. I was so worried about you." Her eyes were riveted to the TV.

I sat down on the couch. I should have thought of that. Once people saw police cars and ambulances outside the parlor, of course the news stations would be there. "I'm sorry I worried you, Gran."

Gran was thinking that she wished she could afford one of those fancy little phones seen in some of the magazines or movies. I kind of wished it too but there wasn't much point. There weren't many places out here for reception. There was only one radio tower and the telephone lines were getting to that point of needing an upgrade after so many years.

We watched the news for a few minutes. The video was repeating as a man was wheeled out on a gurney and loaded into an ambulance.

"You weren't near there, were you?" She questioned with that raised lilt in her voice. Now that Gran knew I was okay, she was angling for gossip.

"I passed by there," I said, carefully. "It was before there were any police or ambulances." I didn't want to think about the poor souls who picked the wrong day to get a tattoo or come in to work.

"So sad. Who do you think would have done such a thing?"

I shrugged. "Have the police said anything?"

"Not yet. They're being very quiet about it all right now. Sookie," she said, drawing my attention from the screen, "did Jason tell you he was coming by with laundry again?"

"No, why?" I was confused.

"There are more men's clothes in the laundry since last week. I might be angry with him if he just came by to drop off his dirty clothes and didn't even muster a hello for me."

Oh. "Maybe he came by when we were both out?" I was bad. Horrible. "I need to get ready for work."

Jumping up, I sped off to my room to change into my Merlotte's winter uniform. I pulled my hair back in a high ponytail and put on a little mascara and lipstick. It wasn't that I expected it to get me any attention, but it made me feel just a little prettier. Gran made up a quick grilled cheese sandwich for me while I was getting ready.

"Is it supposed to snow again today?" I asked her.

"That's what they said on the news this morning. If it does, I think I might just say with Linda for the night."

"Is there anything I can do?" Aunt Linda, now that she was back home, needed a lot of rest time to recuperate from the chemo. With Hadley and her ex-husband gone, any help usually came from Gran, me and sometimes, Jason.

"It's just little things; straightening up, dusting, vacuuming. Making sure she's eating." Gran's focus was distant and even though my mental barriers were up, her anger and sadness spilled through like overflowing wells. "It isn't a place you should be right now." Message received. Linda had things like medicine to deal with any pain and I knew from other minds, drugs, or even very strong medicines could make thoughts fuzzy and incoherent. There were other side effects too, like nausea, which came from both the chemo and the medicine, but I'd still get hit with all the feelings from Linda. I'd spend more energy on trying to block all of it.

On my way to Merlotte's, I decided to take a detour and went to our church instead. I thought I owed it to the people who died to say a prayer for them and hope they find peace somewhere. I said a prayer for Aunt Linda that she would be back to herself soon, and for Gran to find a way out of her despair. She should not have to lose both her children. I also said a little prayer for myself.

The Merlotte's parking lot had some cars in it and I needed an extra moment to concentrate on making the wall between me and everyone's thoughts as strong as I could. Sam was in his office, buried in order forms when I stowed my purse in his desk and picked up my apron.

"You need any help back here, Sam? Looks like you're drowning."

Sam looked up from his paper work, his red gold hair falling in his face. "I thought I'd start getting everything together for taxes."

"Sounds like a good idea." I could see a utility bill mixed in with order forms.

He looked at the desk of papers. "I may need a better filing system."

I laughed. "Could be," I said. "Let me go get started out front and at the next lull I'll give you hand back here?"

"Thanks, Cher. You know I appreciate it." Sam dutifully stuck his head back into his piles of papers and I spun and walked into the main room.

I was relieving Arlene today and started to pass through her section when I spotted her delivering some pitchers to one of the booths.

"You have a good day off?" I asked her when she came back to the bar.

"Sookie, honestly, it's never a day off when you have kids. Coby came home from the sitter's sniffling. Now it's more than sniffles and Lisa's got it too. I've been knee deep in – "

"Yes! Got it, Arlene. Graphic detail not required, please." I smiled widely at her. I forced a little extra concentration on keeping my guard up. I really had no desire to slip into Arlene's head and see pictures of…ick.

When she filled me in on what needed doing as we switched off I started to make the rounds to check up on people. It wasn't very busy at the moment being late for lunch and early for dinner. I straightened up, filled any salt and pepper shakers that needed filling, married a few ketchup bottles and chatted with Lafayette and Danielle, Merlotte's cook and one of Sam's other waitresses. Terry Bellefleur also cooked for Sam, sometimes in the morning or in a pinch, if Sam was desperate.

"That scarf is super cute, Sweet Cheeks. Look at you all matchy-matchy." The scarf was a checked black and white and did match the black pants and white top. I hadn't even realized that when I bought it.

A couple of road workers came in around five and settled at one of the tables. They were wearing heavy winter weather coats over their Renard Parish sweatshirts. I heard one of them groan when I approached them with menus. He'd been in before and I recognized his face has one of the men Jason sometimes worked with. Dark hair and a weather-worn face. He was outside a lot, you could tell; he still managed to have a tan even in winter. "Arlene not in today?"

"She left already. I'm afraid you'll just have to make do with me, guys. What can I get you fellas to drink?"

They ordered a couple of pitchers for the table and I walked away, leaving them to huddle around the weathered guy, Ralph, I heard one of the others call him, as he explained that I was the town crazy woman.

Sam had come out from the back and poured their drinks for me. "Something wrong, Sook?"

"It's nothing."

He looked over at the table the guys were situated in. "Let me know if it is something," he said.

"Really, Sam. I'm fine." Sam knew that I wasn't quite normal not long after we met. He took it stride though and never asked me about it. He knew that I knew things sometimes, and being bartender in a small town like ours, it wasn't long before the patrons of Merlotte's informed him that I was strange, weird or otherwise crazy and should not be hired. He hired me anyway.

I carried the pitchers over and placed them on the table. No matter how strong the barriers were in my head, I couldn't keep them all out now that all their focuses were on me. They were all wondering how I was crazy when I looked so normal. One of them was imagining what I looked like without my clothes on while another was trying to figure out if I had some mental disorder. One of them called my name twice before I registered they were speaking it and not thinking it. That seemed to do it for some of them. I took their orders and brought the ticket over to the kitchen hatch.

While their food cooked I told Sam I was heading back to his office to get a look at the filing system he had. I started with what was on his desk, separating everything into neat little piles. I went back out to bring the road workers their food. They had come to the general consensus that I was slow in the head, one comparing me to Forrest Gump. I didn't want to hear anymore after that and while I worked on the mindless task of separating different forms, I tried to do a kind of mental exercise I had worked out to build my little barrier up.

In about half an hour I had an entire file drawer cleaned out, new folder dividers labeled and everything put back in and separated, while still making trips back to check on the customers. This was good. It was keeping me busy and focused and it left me unable to think about what happened just a few hours before.

The dinner crowd started to filter in and I got to work hustling food and drinks. A few people had heard about what happened in Shreveport and were talking about it. Tom and Cleo Hardaway asked Sam to turn the TV on over the bar to see the news but thankfully, the news was covering something about the Super Bowl. They were sitting at a booth with their longtime friend, Jan Fowler. I chatted amicably with Cleo for a minute and she was glad to see me working and helping my Grandmother out. She was always nice to me when I'd see her working in the high school cafeteria.

"We can't all go to college," she said after a moment of discussing some of my other former classmates.

"No, I guess not. I'll go put your order in." And with that, I turned and strode back to the hatch.

The rest of the night passed in quickly while Danielle and I worked cohesively together and I found a bit of time to clean out a second drawer and organize it in Sam's office. Danielle and I put up all the chairs on the tables once they were cleaned off for the night while Lafayette scrubbed off his grill and Sam cleaned up the bar. Terry would be coming in before opening tomorrow to clean the floors and bathrooms.

We grabbed our coats and Danielle and I grabbed our purses from Sam's desk. It was snowing again and there was a thin layer of it coating all our cars. We all stood for a minute to watch it, being such a rare thing down here. Lafayette shivered and the moment broke.

A few cars were out but only myself and another went down Hummingbird Road. Old Jesse Compton must have finally got himself a live-in nurse. I knew he sorely needed one, especially for harsh nights when he needed something and the only place open twenty-four-seven was the Grabbit Qwik. It wasn't until I turned down Hummingbird Road that I finally eased back some of the tension and lowered the steel plates I envision to block others' thoughts. Something flashed in the corner of my eye. I glanced at the woods as I passed. A deer, maybe.

It happened again, closer. Too big for a deer. A flash of color sped by. It looked more like a person now. I didn't dare go any faster than I was. I did not have snow tires or chains and usually snow melted too fast to require much plowing.

There it was again. It was gone just as quickly. I heard something very strange then. A laugh. A big whooping kind of cackle in the night, even through the closed windows. I wasn't ten minutes from Gran's driveway when I realized that the mind traveling behind me wasn't Jesse Compton's nurse. It was one of the snarled and tangled minds I'd touched earlier today.

With that, I sped up. So did he, ramming the back of my Nova. The thing I saw in the trees darted out in front of me and I swerved, skidding on the snow. The car fish-tailed and I felt it being gripped and tossed. My head hit the window when the side of the car hit the road and I saw stars. Then I saw nothing.

I swam up out of a falling space to the sound of scraping metal. At first, my eyes saw nothing. My head was warm and the rest of me, not so much. There was a tingling sensation in my left foot. I tried to shift my body but my left arm sang out in pain. Useless. My right was doing okay, and I tugged at the seatbelt strap. The clock on my dash was bright in the darkness of the cab. I'd been out maybe a minute.

A car door slammed. "Was that really necessary?" A voice growled. Footsteps. The werewolf.

"You needed her to stop." Said the other, smoothly. The man's mind was an empty void. He was a vampire.

My chest was hurting a lot from being so forced against the seatbelt. I couldn't get the release mechanism to work.

"Yes, and we also need her alive for now too."

For now? I wished for the first time that I carried a weapon around in my car the way Jason always did.

"We're not leaving her here, regardless. It will look like an accident this way." The vampire gripped the side of the car and lifted it slowly upright. He lifted it. Like a freaking toy car.

I watched this in the rearview mirror and cried out when the weight on my shoulder shifted. Blood had run down from my nose on my chin and cheek. I'm sure it was broken.

The door was suddenly gone from its hinges and the face of the vampire appeared before me. Its fangs were out.

"Well, look at you." The vampire was a thin Asian man with a narrow face. His long, smooth hair was tied in a knot at the nape of his neck. He had the lean, wiry figure of a distance runner. His teeth were something else altogether and I imagined he'd never seen a dentist during his human days. There was a small piece of glass in my upper arm and I winced as he took a long lick up the trail of blood. "Oh, that is lovely. I think I may keep you for myself."

Vaguely, I registered the condescending way he was talking to me like a stray puppy. "Who are you?" I asked as the werewolf came up beside him. His hair was a lighter brown and cut close to his face. He had a large nose and high cheekbones and he was bigger and broader than the Asian vampire. The werewolf was the taller of the two. "What are you?"

"Can you not tell, little human?" said the vampire. He pulled the seatbelt hard enough to rip it, my last defense keeping me where I was and gripped my arm to pull me out of the car.

I saw spots as pain radiated out from it. I didn't realize I was screaming with fear and pain until the vampire slapped me. I fell to the cold pavement and something in my back caused an eruption of pain. The werewolf touched me then and with my mind numb and completely open I saw he had followed me from the tattoo parlor after I had sped off. I was concentrating too hard to notice. I flipped through his mind like a book. Since he was carrying me off to what I was distantly aware of as a sure death, I wasn't bothered by doing this. He'd left the two werewolves in the shop and just followed me. I thought that was very stupid, leaving his buddies behind. What kind of friend was he? Oh, these guys had cell phones. Well la-de-da. And who was this vampire? Was he one of Eric's? I struggled in his grip but his arms were around me like metal bands.

"We don't need to bring her back to your witch, Mathis. What will she do that we can't do here?"

"We are too exposed here. Hallow needs to know where Northman is. Your master's scouts aren't doing enough."

"Our scouts are not here to help you. It is a courtesy to your mistress I am here tonight, wolf, nothing more," he said with an edge in his voice. There was a cold nothingness in his pale face. I was absolutely terrified of him. "You are being well compensated for your tasks. This should have been taken care of weeks ago."

"We were not expecting them to disappear!"

"Then you are not very competent witches," he snarled. "How can you be sure she knows? All she did was speed off from the shop." He had come around to face the werewolf who was carrying me bridal style with both hands, my right arm pinned between my body and his and my left, dangling, useless.

"I don't know what you're talking about." They stopped arguing for a moment to glare at me.

"Where is the Northman?" The vampire asked, looking into my eyes.

Distantly, I heard a whisper. "Here," it said, and I fell to the ground again.


	6. Death Takes A Holiday

A/N: Charlaine Harris owns these wonderful characters and Chicpea is a wonderful beta who catches all my mistakes.

Thank you all who have left reviews and have alerted the story!

* * *

Chapter 6 – Death Takes a Holiday

I went down hard on the cold pavement, landing on the side of my injured arm and shoulder.

I lost more time. When my eyes opened they landed on three sets of legs maybe fifty feet away. I blinked and they were in different positions. I thought I had a concussion. The headlight on the left side of my car had gone out and only a single light remained to illuminate the road Eric was fighting on with the werewolf and other vampire. The headlights from the werewolf's car, Mathis, I heard the vampire call him, were working and they provided enough light to see the road around me.

The two vampires were moving too fast for me to see. One second they were near me, the next they were yards away. I could hear their snarling and their cries as they struck at each other.

My mind was open and Mathis was chanting out loud and in his head. I felt a wind kick up and I knew he was trying to do something to Eric. I managed to get to my knees when dizziness hit me. I lurched over and lost my sight for a moment. Carefully, I leaned on my right leg and got to my feet. I couldn't stand completely straight. My body was in agony. Whatever was being chanted was starting to take effect. Eric was getting slower. The other vampire had taken a good chunk of flesh out of his upper arm.

I need a distraction, but I had nothing. No weapon. I looked at the sad state of my car. It was barely salvageable with a destroyed left side, broken door and missing bumper. The back was a bit crumpled as well and the trunk had popped open. Where was the bumper, anyway? I glanced around me and found it a little ways off toward the tree line. I discarded the idea immediately. I'd need both hands to swing something that big. I moved as fast as I could to my car and pushed the trunk door up.

Next to the spilled pile of clothes I'd taken from Eric's and the cooler of blood, it turned out I did have a weapon. My tire iron and jack sat plainly in front of me. I held the iron in a hard grip as I moved around my car and up behind the werewolf-witch, who was still chanting. Eric wasn't faring well, with the Asian vampire shoving him to his knees and grabbing him about the head. I struck, hitting the werewolf hard on the side of the head. He went down like a ton of bricks.

The effect was instantaneous and Eric flipped the Asian vampire over his shoulder. They wrestled around on the ground for a moment until Eric pulled a move that would have the WWF salivating. He pinned the vampire's head to the asphalt with his shoe and twisted his arm clean off. The Asian vampire let out a shrill scream as blood began to pool where his arm was. "Do you yield?" Eric asked him.

The Asian vampire said something foul in another language. He managed to unbalance Eric and rolled out from under him.

I shuffled back to my car and slid down against the front grill, the last of my energy spent. I gripped the tire iron in my good hand should I need it again. I was really tired. Snow was still falling lightly and I shivered for laying so long on the damp pavement.

I closed my eyes for a second and when I opened them again I saw Eric using the Asian vampire's arm as a club while the Asian had a hold of my car's bumper. Mathis was starting to stir. I crawled over to him on my knees and hit him again.

There were some more funny spots in my vision and I came to on the ground next to the werewolf-witch. Eric had his hands on the vampire's head and he was twisting. The bloody arm lay discarded.

"Wait!" I screamed at him and winced. "Eric! Wait, don't kill him." I tried to get up from the ground but it was a losing battle.

Eric and the vampire both looked like they'd just wrestled a couple of bears. I saw them clearly in the illumination of the headlights. Both had snarls on their faces and their fangs were distended. Their eyes were completely feral. He wasn't listening to me.

"Eric!" Cold eyes shot up to meet my own.

"What?" he barked out, his voice slow and husky.

"Ask him," I said, shakily, "Ask him who his master is."

Eric looked down at the vampire he held in a vice grip and asked. The vampire spit on him and grabbed a hold of the fingers Eric had on his face, twisting them. I heard the crunch and the ripping sound as two fingers disappeared and he cried out, his grip loosening. Instead of moving on Eric, he looked to me.

I had a moment of realization before he was on top of me, pinning me back to the ground. There was a flashback of Eric doing to same thing and I screamed, struggling with my one arm when Eric grabbed him about the neck and twisted. His head came off with a horrible tearing sound of bone and flesh ripping apart as the body fell against me. I'd just seen firsthand what a vampire could really do.

The road was suddenly deathly silent except for my harsh breathing. Eric pushed the body off me while it started to disintegrate before my eyes. He flaked away, dark flecks mixing with the white snow fall. Eric was looking curiously at me, his eyes wide and dilated and his body held very still. His fangs were down. The werewolf began to stir and Eric was over him in an instant, crouching down.

"Stop! You can't, Eric."

Eric had Mathis' neck bared and was leaning dangerously close. I could practically feel him shudder with anticipation, his body like a taught string waiting. I looked very carefully into his eyes. "We need to talk to him. You can't kill him."

"I need blood."

"In the trunk of my car," I breathed out.

He sped over to the open trunk. I couldn't see what he was doing but he was gone for a while.

The ground didn't feel so cold anymore. I knew I should try to get up, try to find something to restrain the werewolf with but I was just so tired. I could stay here until Eric finished his blood. It wasn't like he was running off any time soon. Laying back, the snow was getting into my eyes, so I closed them.

I felt like I was swimming. Someone was shaking the water. My arms moved, and not in the direction I wanted them to go.

"Wake up." More jarring.

"But I am awake." Even to me it sounded fuzzy. I felt myself being pulled over something and the return of the throbbing in my shoulder and arm brought me too alertness. A sharp pain in my left arm had my eyes open, looking up at two bright blue ones. I gasped and tried to move, unsuccessfully. He held up a piece of glass in front of my eyes.

"I thought that might get your attention."

"Yeah, mission accomplished," I said, trying to gain control of my heart rate. I glanced around, realizing I was still partially on the ground. The rest of me was in Eric's lap. The werewolf lay in a moaning heap nearby, bound up and gagged with duct tape. "Where'd you find the tape?"

"His car."

Oh. So it was tape probably meant for me. "I need to go to a hospital."

Eric said nothing for a time, his attention drawn to the man squirming around in duct tape. There was no way this was going to end well for him. I am not a violent person, nor do I condone eye-for-an-eye revenge or even the wrathful smiting laid down in the Old Testament. But this man had brought violence down upon himself. He's part of a group that attacked Eric and now me. There would be a price for that.

Eric's grip on me tightened. "What would you tell them?"

"Car accident. You found me." The fact that Eric didn't readily agree with my decision to go to a hospital was worrying.

"You do not heal the way I do," he said, gazing down at me. "But I know how to heal someone."

"Does it involve a hospital?"

"No."

I resigned myself to putting whatever energy I had left into a struggle when Eric bit down hard on his left wrist. "What are you doing?"

"Healing you." He held the wrist up to my mouth.

"Are you crazy?" I tried to move out of his lap but his other arm had me in a solid hold and I was still working with just one arm.

"You must drink, Sookie, if you want to be well again. Do you think those two were working alone? That one of them hasn't told their masters where they were tonight? You face danger now as much as I do."

Shoot. I should have stayed in my car. Or waited and gone at night. Or better yet, not gone at all. "How did this happen to me?"

Eric's eyes locked with mine and he touched my cheek gently with his large hand. "You stopped for a stranger in the middle of the road and showed him kindness. You helped him out of the dark. Because you are the kind of woman who would concern herself with someone she is afraid of."

And now I was the kind of woman who hits werewolves over the head with tire irons and watches a group of people get slaughtered. "Because I could not stop for death, he kindly stopped for me." Eric looked considerably confused. I guess he wouldn't remember who Emily Dickinson was. "It won't turn me into a vampire?"

"No. I would…I would have to drink all your blood and give you mine."

"Hey," I said, weakly, "you remembered something." Why did it have to be that?

"No," he shook his head. "It's more like remembering how something is done. I could drive the witch's car if I wanted to. I know how to drive. I know how to turn someone a vampire."

This was all very fascinating and I'd love nothing more than to ask Eric more about it but I was starting to have problems concentrating. "Good. You'll be able to make a clean getaway."

He laughed. "You'll take my blood and be well," he said and brushed the hair from my face. It was a very intimate gesture. "You have already helped me more than I thought possible. Let me do the same for you."

I nodded, as much as I could in my position. If he had a way to heal my body and avoid thousands of dollars in hospital bills, I was all for that. "Okay, bring out this magic blood."

Eric bit into his wrist again – thankfully the one with the undamaged hand attached to it, never taking his eyes off me. His fangs glistened with dark blood and he lowered his wrist to my mouth, blood flowing slowly from the two small punctures. I was expecting the metallic coppery taste of a penny but after a moment it was good, salty and I could feel my head clearing. I brought my undamaged arm up and gripped his as I drank. With every pull I felt a little better. Eric let out a low moan and squirmed underneath me. It seemed like he was enjoying himself. I was wearing a coat, but even through the fabric I could feel something poking at my back. I began to feel better as I drank, stronger. Eric's grip around me was firm and secure and I didn't mind it so much anymore. His blue eyes were closed and his head was back. I tried not to think it was blood that I was drinking, blood that was allowing me to heal and feel better. I could feel the bones in my arm knitting back together and the cartilage in my nose correcting itself. It was the strangest feeling. It itched like hell, too. Eric leaned forward and touched his forehead to mine. He let out a long guttural sound, then relaxed completely.

I pulled his wrist back and bolted out of his lap to stand before my brain even registered that I was standing. He looked…well, he looked like he'd just enjoyed himself immensely. His eyes were glazed and he was leaning back on his hands with a beatific smile on his face. There was a wet spot on the front of his pants, but then he was kind of damp and dirty all over from the fighting and the snow.

I looked at my left shoulder and began to rotate it and lift my arm up. It was stiff but I could use it again and my pain was gone. I could stand up straight again with only a little soreness. I touched my nose. It was sore, still but it wasn't broken anymore. Amazing. The medical world could be revolutionized if they knew about this. My open wound from the glass had closed up and there was only the faintest of lines where the glass had penetrated. My coat had a nice rip in it but I could sew that up later. I stared at the skin it revealed. My skin was glowing. I looked at Eric who was standing now. He glowed too. I thought it was a trick of the light at first. I noticed a slight glow to his skin when I'd first seen him but I thought it was from his paleness and my headlights.

"My skin is like yours," I said, fascinated.

"What do you mean?"

"I'm glowing!" I laughed out loud.

"You can see that?"

I spun around, seeing farther than I thought possible in the darkness. I looked up. "I can see the stars."

"Sookie, that's the snow. Also it's cloudy."

"But I can see them." I felt an energy in my body like never before. "Is this what it's like for you?"

"Not exactly." I felt him move up behind me and wrap him arms around my waist. He took a deep breath in. I could feel him – my body reacting to his nearness and touch in a different way than it had yesterday. That scared me and sobered me up mighty quick. I felt his mouth suddenly on my neck, covering any part my scarf and coat did not. I tensed up and he stopped. "You're afraid of me."

"I'm…" I stepped out of his hold and turned around to face him. "I don't know what I am. Confused, maybe. You're…I just saw you rip a guy's head off. And now you're trying to nibble my neck." And I kind of wanted to nibble back. What was wrong with me? I felt jumbled, energized, confused and worried. I wanted to sprint and do cartwheels and jump on Eric's back and let him zoom me around. I settled for putting my hands on his cheeks and closing my eyes, completely blissed out by touching him and not hearing anything.

I sighed. Eric leaned in and kissed me. It was unexpected and for a second I did nothing, which he took advantage of to draw me closer and press me up against his body. I'd kissed a few guys before, here and there, but it was never good and it never lasted very long when touch always amplified their thoughts so. I spent more time concentrating on blocking their thoughts and none on the actual kissing part. This was…Eric knew what he was doing and he did it well. I felt myself responding to his touch as my hands went up to his shoulders. I made a noise, and it was definitely the kind of noise that spurred Eric on to step up his ministrations. I could feel his fangs, and touching them with my tongue seemed also to spur him on.

Then the man on the ground made a noise and I was pulled out of what Eric and I were doing by the sudden burst of thoughts coming in from him. Eric did not look happy to be interrupted.

The werewolf was thinking his head hurt but that pain helped to clear his mind and it was easier to read his thoughts. He was thinking about how he might survive tonight. I had to wonder that myself. I wondered something else too.

"Eric, how did you know to come here?"

He looked from the man to me. "There are only two roads between the burned house and yours. I was in the woods nearby when I heard the crash."

Was his hearing really that good? How far did the sound of a crash reverberate?

"We should leave the road now," he said.

"What about him?" I asked, nodding in the direction of our captive. "You're not going to kill him too, are you?"

"I want to," he said, crouching down on his haunches to look the man in his eyes.

I could read the fear in them. "His name is Mathis. I heard them talking."

"He has information about what's happened to me." Eric pulled Mathis toward him and gripped the back of his head. Their gazes locked and Mathis stopped whimpering and fidgeting. I tried to listen to his mind but there was nothing. White noise.

"What did you do to him?"

"Made him more compliant."

I felt my stomach drop. "What you tried to do to me."

"Sookie," he said, quietly, standing up. "It's a precaution. People don't know vampires exist."

Right. "Yeah…you don't want people spilling your secrets. I get it. And I get the expediency. I know what he's done. It's still mind control, though."

"He'll get his mind back."

I didn't know what to say to that. Had I not been in a similar position less than an hour ago, about to be dragged off by this werewolf and another vampire? And there were questions to ask him.

I turned and walked back to Mathis' car to find the keys were still inside. Good. Eric was only a step behind me, Mathis slung over his shoulder. He threw the werewolf into the trunk of the car and shut it. I took the clothes from Eric's house that had spilled out of my trunk, and the boots and handed them to him. "These are yours," I said, "from your house." The cooler with the blood in it was empty, bags of blood had been dropped haphazardly around as he finished each. I gathered them all up and tossed them back in the cooler. I'd stuff them in a garbage bag when I got home.

Home. I was going to go home. That was a comforting thought.

Eric startled me when he touched my shoulder. "What are you thinking about so hard?"

"That I'm alive." I took a deep breath. Yeah, I am. "That I'm not in Mathis' position right now, on my way to Shreveport or somewhere else."

"I would not let that happen."

It was a sweet thought. I believed him.

"I have to call the police when I go back to my house," I told Eric when we got into the car.

"What for?"

"I have to tell them I was in a car accident. It's the only way to explain what happened to my car." I'd have to file a claim. My insurance premium would go up.

"Can it wait until we have questioned the witch?" he implored.

"Yes." I started the drive home. "I'll need you to take this car with you when you leave tonight. I can't explain a strange car in my driveway." I wasn't sure where else we'd go to question him. Not a lot of places in Bon Temps scream "Use this place for interrogation." Well, there are the woods, but it's too cold out.

Eric set Mathis down on one of Gran's kitchen chairs. I was exceptionally glad she decided to stay with Aunt Linda tonight. I couldn't imagine what she would say to having a werewolf-slash-witch and a vampire in her kitchen.

I couldn't read anything coming from Mathis' mind. "Can you undo whatever you did to him so he can talk?"

"He can talk like this too if you ask him something."

"What's your name?" I asked him when I took the tape off his mouth.

The name popped out of the fog in mind just as he answered, "Mathis Winthrop." Huh. Okay then.

"I'd like to get cleaned up if he's not going anywhere. You should too."

Eric looked down at his ripped and bloody clothing. I was glad I took the clothes from his laundry room.

My shower was quick, but wonderful. I let the hot water beat against every sore and stiff part of my body and I watched the dried blood go down the drain as I scrubbed it off. I changed into a pair of flannel pajamas and left some fresh towels for Eric to use. While he showered I gathered up his torn clothing and shoved it all into a black trash bag. I put the empty blood bags in there as well.

I wanted to get this over with already. I was exhausted, sore, and I still had to call someone about my car. I wouldn't be getting much sleep tonight.

"Who is your master?" Eric questioned when we were both seated in the kitchen. He had put on a dark long-sleeved shirt and a pair of jeans. He was still using the canvas slip-ons I got him, rather than his boots.

"I have no master."

"Who do you work for?" I tried.

"SWEPCO." I rolled my eyes. Talk about being specific.

A confused expression was written across Eric's face. "It's the Southern Electric Power Company."

"Do you serve any other?" Eric ventured.

"My packmaster and coven mistress, Marnie Stonebrook, known to us by her coven name, Hallow."

Eric and I looked at each other. "Why does she want Eric?"

"She covets him for herself as much as she does power over the other supernaturals in this territory. He was promised to her as a spoil in exchange for her and the coven's assistance in destabilizing the hierarchy of vampires in Louisiana."

"Are you saying I am not the only one affected with this spell?"

"Yes."

Well this is just a fine kettle of fish.

* * *

A/N: Due to an illness Clive Wearing (real person) lives perpetually in the present. He has no old memories and he can't make new ones that last longer than a few seconds. His long term episodic memory is gone. However, implicit memories, which control motor function, motivation, and sensory memory are located in a different part of the brain. So if you ask Clive directions to the kitchen, he couldn't tell you, but if you ask him to make you a cup of tea, he can do that no problem.

The human brain is an interesting thing.


	7. When Decency Is No Longer Affordable

A/N: Charlaine Harris owns these characters. I enjoy taking them out for a spin though. Are you reading **Birds of A Feather**? Yes? Have you left a review? No? Go do that. Chicpea deserves your love.

Also True Blood is almost over. Wow, this season. There are no words for all the crazy. Actually there are. And if you go to finiteramblings . tumblr . com you can see some really funny True Blood Season 5 memes.

* * *

Chapter 7 – When Decency Is No Longer Affordable

"Who else has been affected?" Eric asked.

And why haven't they been spotted by anyone? No "memory-less meandering undead," in any newspaper headlines that I could think of. More questions went through my head. We'd never get through them all before dawn.

Mathis didn't answer. I checked his head but there was nothing. Just the white noise. "Do you know their names?" I asked.

"No."

"They must be working in separate groups," I said, more to myself than Eric.

"Groups?"

"You know, different groups. Each group is mostly independent so they don't know about the other in case one of the groups gets caught." I had read about something like that in a spy novel. It had been shelved in the mystery section by mistake but the summary on the back was interesting enough that I checked it out from the library anyway.

"Has your group of witches cast spells on anyone else in this area?"

"Just the Sheriff."

"Sheriff?" It was my turn to parrot. I looked at Eric. "Eric's a Sheriff? Of what?"

"The other vampires in this territory." Mathis spoke, without inflection. I hadn't actually intended that question to be answered but it was a night for surprises.

Eric sat back, looking befuddled. "What does this mean?" He asked. "Am I the leader of all the other vampires?"

I shrugged. "Our sheriff's far from any leader." Bud Dearborne was an old fashioned man with a pug face. He thought I was a freak on a regular basis and disliked me for disrupting the status quo of his town. He liked my brother even less and considered the both of only a step up from white trash.

"He said there's a hierarchy of vampires. If you have a title like that, maybe you're part of that?" I speculated, "Or maybe you're part of some secret vampire police." That would explain why his ledgers all looked like pay-offs, among other things. I still had to tell him what happened earlier today.

We didn't dwell too much longer on the subject, since neither of us knew anything about it or what to ask, though I knew Eric was very curious about it all.

And I _knew_ that Eric wanted to know more about the vampire hierarchy that he was a part of. Crap. I'd slipped into Eric's mind without even realizing it.

My heart rate picked up and I tried to pretend like I hadn't noticed anything. I'd finally found someone I couldn't hear. I didn't want that to change.

"Sookie?" Eric was watching me with a veiled expression. "Is something wrong?"

I guess he could hear it beating. If he could hear me talking with Jason and Gran from the woods edge, he could probably hear my heart rate too. "I'm alright." I was many other things too but I'd consider them on my own time.

"Who was the vampire with you tonight?" I asked Mathis, getting back to the interrogation.

"Kim Jade." An image of the vampire appeared in his mind, though it was a little different from the vampire I'd seen tonight. His hair was loose and went just past his shoulders. He was dressed in well-tailored suit and there were two other vampires with him. The memory had distorted his features some; made him more ghoulish that he really was, with long fangs that dripped saliva and glowing eyes. How fascinating. This must be how Mathis sees Kim, or maybe vampires in general? I didn't know, except while it looked like Kim Jade, at the same time, it didn't.

Eric called my name again. "Where did you go?" He touched my shoulder.

"Just thinking," I replied. "I guess you wouldn't know who Kim Jade is."

Eric's mouth moved into a thin line of anger. "No, but I will find out. Why were you traveling with the vampire?" He questioned, returning his gaze to Mathis.

Mathis wavered, kind of like he was coming out of a daze so Eric grabbed him by the hair and focused on his eyes once more. He asked the question again.

"I asked him to help me grab the girl, in case I was right and she did know about Northman's whereabouts."

"Is this vampire one that works for Eric?" I didn't remember seeing his name in any of Eric's books. God that felt like a week ago.

"No."

"Who does he work for?"

He didn't answer. There was nothing but fog.

"Does he work for another vampire?" There was a hint of recognition that sparked.

"Yes."

"Hey, progress." I tried to sound enthusiastic about it, but it came off closer to sarcasm.

"It is something," Eric agreed. "Why would another vampire help you? What does he get out of it?" Eric asked.

It was a practical question, but kind of at the bottom of things I wanted to ask.

"Recognition, favors, gifts from his master if our campaign is successful."

"Who is his master?" We asked at the same time.

It was like trying to pull a memory from a drug induced haze. Letters tried to form in his head but it was clear someone had done something to his mind. This haze wasn't Eric's doing. Some other vampire was responsible. Maybe even Kim Jade. I wouldn't be able to get into his mind telepathically unless Eric lifted his hypnosis and I was worried about him finding out what I could do.

Eric sat back in disgust. "This is useless. We are getting nowhere."

"_Maybe_," I said, "If you released him from your control, we'd get more than the simplest of answers." And I could see his thoughts better.

A grumble of frustration came from Eric's direction as he leaned over and caught Mathis's eyes.

I concentrated on the tangled mess of Mathis's mind as it cleared. When he realized where he was he tried to get up but all he did was kind of flop over, since he was still taped up. Eric lifted him off the floor by his shirt and threw him back in the chair, sitting down directly across from him.

"The vampire you were with tonight, what can you tell us about him?" Eric asked.

Kim Jade was part of a group of vampires that met with his coven. I could see the ones he met during the meeting. "He was part of a group."

Eric looked at me with a narrowed expression and turned to Mathis, who had surprise written on his face. "You're right, Sookie."

"I don't think he knows all the vampires, the same way he doesn't know who else they've attacked, if it's true they are working in separate groups."

"Why are they here?" Eric asked.

The next thought was very clear as Mathis gave Eric a venomous look. _To take over._

I couldn't hold back the shock from my face. Meanwhile, Eric was too busy staring Mathis down to notice. He wasn't saying anything and Eric caught his eyes, compelling him to answer.

"While Louisiana scrambles to find its missing vampires, ours will take it for themselves."

The muscles in Eric's body grew visibly tense the angrier he got. He was glaringly maddened by these attempting usurpers.

"You've said what your packmaster - I guess that's your werewolf leader, gets out of this, but what about you?"

"We'll be taking over the Shreveport pack," he said and my eyes widened. Pack? "All supernaturals in the state will owe us tithes."

"This is so weird," I said to Eric. "I mean of all the places to take over? What's so special about Louisiana?" It was one of the poorest states in the country, and here, in this area of northern Louisiana, were the poorest counties and parishes in the state.

It was clear Eric had no idea. He looked like a lost child about to have a temper-tantrum.

"They know their strategy," he said. "Divide us up, make us weak, grappling to figure out what is going on, then take everyone by surprise."

Mathis shook his head, breaking the small control Eric took to compel him. "I don't know what she sees in you, vampire. You're dead. You belong in the dirt, but our mistress wants you. She is mad and powerful, but obsessive. She will have you, even if you provide the greatest threat." He began to whisper something and I caught the gist of something foreign in his head. Eric realized it too because he was up faster than you could shout "fire", backhanding Mathis right out of the chair. I was up too and backed up to the kitchen counter.

Eric's fangs were down and his lips were pulled back in a tight snarl. He lifted Mathis up by the neck. "There will be no more spell casting in your future," he growled and sank his fangs in.

I gasped and covered my mouth. For moment, I was frozen. I just couldn't move at all. When my brain started to comprehend what Eric was doing, I backed up toward the kitchen counter. Eric was too busy drinking blood to notice. My feet didn't stop until I was by the phone where Gran kept her tall stool. I pushed it out of the way and sunk down to my haunches against the wall, my heart racing. I didn't know where to go. Should I rescind his invitation? What if someone else tried to do what happened on the road tonight? Who else knew where I lived?

It was that dreaded possibility that stopped me from saying the words right then. I couldn't deal with this. He was…he just…and not even for the first time tonight. I closed my eyes and leaned my head against my knees.

What the hell am I doing? Helping a vampire? I was going to get myself killed. I crawled up a roof today! If I hadn't been reading those werewolves minds in front of the tattoo parlor, if I'd had my walls up, I would have been just as dead as Eric's employees. I felt shaky and tired and wired all at the same time. When was the last time I'd had any food? Lunchtime. Almost twelve hours ago.

A hand fell lightly on my shoulder and my head snapped up, hitting the wall behind it. It was still tender from earlier and this didn't help.

"Sookie," he said, and crouched down. I tensed. There was blood running down his chin and his fangs were down. He had lost his pale coloring and his cheeks were almost…pink.

"Eric."

"I've frightened you again."

Uh, yeah.

"I'm sorry." He touched my cheek with his cool hand. "I won't hurt you."

"I…" but I couldn't finish the thought. I know? I didn't know. I wanted to lean into his hand, into the cool nothingness of his mind. Whatever was in that blood…it was something else. I could feel Eric next to me, not because I could see him, but I could feel it in my mind. "Is he dead?"

"Yes."

I reached my mind out and found nothing. Nothing came from the kitchen where Mathis was sure to be. Now I knew the difference between someone actually dead, and someone undead. "You shouldn't have killed him."

"He was trying to cast another spell," he said, furiously.

I shook my head. My voice managed to stay steady when I said, "Doesn't matter. He still had information we need to know. I don't know if he told anyone else about where he was going. His pack, or his coven or whatever else, might know where I live." I was selfishly only considering my own reasons for keeping him alive. What if Mathis had a family? Children? They'll never know what happened to him.

"We can find you somewhere else to stay until this is finished."

"No," I said. I repeated myself with conviction. "I can't leave. My grandmother lives here. My job is here. You have no idea when or how long or if this can ever be finished."

"We will find a way. I am sure of it."

"I'm glad one of us is confident."

"You should be too. We've made fantastic progress."

I gave him my skeptical face.

"Truly. I've discovered and accomplished more here, with you in the last three nights than I have since I woke this way."

I relaxed at his words. "Well, when you put it like that…I am pretty good." I couldn't hold back the little smile that formed. "That reminds me, I haven't told you about today yet."

"Tell me," he said.

When I got up to the part where I scaled his roof, he said, "Clearly, this was too obvious a hiding place. I'll have to find a better place. At least you didn't have to go through too much effort to obtain the key."

"Too much effort? I scaled a roof. Most people hide keys under potted plants or in small garden statues. Not on roofs."

"You were quite resourceful."

I told him about some of the things I'd found. That it seemed like his house was safe, at least during the day. No one was watching it. I didn't want to explain too much of the paper work I saw, since it wasn't really my business but I had to explain how I came to be at the tattoo parlor.

"So you really are a businessman."

"Yes. A good one, at that."

"There were a lot of things I couldn't make sense of, and I didn't want to take them from your home. You had a phone and address book but I didn't know if you would be able to trust any of the people in there.

We discussed a bit more of my findings and Marnie Stonebrook's very strong message left at the parlor but we were still left with the question of what to do with all of this information.

"You can't go after them by yourself."

"Of course I could. They would not be expecting it." He grinned. "We could launch our own surprise attack."

"Noooo. Definitely not. What happens if they manage to curse you with something else, hmmm? What are you going to do then? I know you're strong, Eric, but there are too many of them." I said, taking his hand. "You can't fight them alone."

"How can I not, when I don't where the loyalties of my people lay?"

I shook my head. "I don't know."

Eric desperately wanted to go hunting these witches and werewolves but there were too many things that could go wrong with that. We didn't know where they were or how many they were. There were more vampires with them. I'd seen Eric fight one on one with another vampire tonight but how would he fair when the numbers were stacked against him?

He picked up Mathis's body and loaded him into the trunk of his car and left for the day. It was a little past three and I still had to deal with my car. Eric was upset that I shot down his idea to hunt for the witches but I wasn't going to get in the middle of a fight with a bunch of creatures that were stronger and more powerful than me. This wasn't my fight.

There wasn't much more than a few drops of blood on the floor and I scrubbed those off until the floor was shining underneath. I called the station to tell them about my car.

I wasn't sure how much veiled contempt I could take from Bud or Andy when I told them, so I was about as thrilled as could be when Kevin answered.

I almost cried when the first thing he asked was if I was hurt. "I'm okay." I would have to explain my lack of injuries. "I hit my head, and had to walk the rest of the way in the snow, but otherwise, I'm pretty lucky."

"I can't remember the last time we've seen so much snow around here. You're not the only one who's been in an accident tonight."

"I'm not?"

"No there was a couple driving up one of the parish roads earlier that hit a huge buck. When they swerved, they skidded right into a tree. Andy's still over there waiting for the tow."

"My god, are they alive?"

"One is, for now. The ambulance should be in Granger by now. It's definitely a night for bad things, Sookie."

"You're telling me. So when do you think someone would be able to come out and have a look at mine?"

"I'll get Kenya up there around about eight-thirty; nine, once her shift starts. That'll be the earliest yet. I need to be here at the station house while Andy's out and Bud's home. I'll radio the tow for you too, Sookie."

And Bud wouldn't bother himself to come out at this hour anyway. Not for a "car accident." "Thank's Kevin, that would be great."

It was very quiet when I hung up the phone. After everything that happened today, the silence was kind of…loud. I checked all the windows and locked the kitchen and front doors. I straightened up the kitchen and took the used towels to the washing machine and threw them in to start a load. While they were washing I made a sandwich with some of the leftover chicken Gran had in the fridge.

When the microwave dinged, I jumped. Me, anxious? No way. I checked the windows and doors again after eating. When the towels were finally in the dryer, I collapsed on my little twin bed and fell asleep instantly.

The next thing I knew, someone was jostling me awake.

"Sookie? Wake up."

I grunted. "No…"

There was a tutting sound before I was attacked with sunlight. Gran had pulled the curtains back from my window.

I hissed under my breath. _It burns…._

"What's going on," I mumbled. The events of the night before started coming back to me in bits and pieces and I bolted upright. "Gran? What time is it?"

"Just after nine. Would you like to explain what Officer Jones is doing over here so early?"

I launched out of bed and hugged her. She was taken aback by the gesture, since touching sometimes brought her thoughts out even more. She was worried when she didn't see my car parked in my normal space this morning. Kenya being here gave her even more cause for alarm.

"I was in a car accident."

She pulled back and held me by the arms to look me over. "Oh, Sookie – but you don't have a scratch on you." She hugged me then and held me tight.

"I know."

Gran pulled away from me a few moments later. "Better get up and dressed now; Kenya is waiting to speak with you."

She turned to walk out and even with her back facing me, I knew she was wiping away tears.


	8. Have Witch, Will Travel

A/N: Hello! Apologies for the lack of chapter last week. Grad school has officially started again.

Thanks go to the wonderful Chicpea for being an awesome beta and to Charlaine Harris who owns these characters.

Thank you also to everyone who has put this story on their favorites or alerts and especially to those that review. I do love and appreciate the comments, even if I don't have the chance to reply to all of them. I hope you will continue to leave more.

Also, this chapter has a few references to the Charlaine Harris short story "Lucky" which is part of the Sookieverse. If you haven't read it, I highly recommend it!

* * *

Chapter 8: Have Witch, Will Travel

While I dressed, I thought about what I was going to tell Kenya. There weren't a lot of options. I checked myself in the mirror, something I hadn't done after I took my shower last night.

There wasn't a mark on me. Even the bite from a few days ago was gone. I didn't think it was my imagination that in the light of day my hair looked lighter and shinier and my skin seemed even clearer than normal.

Wow. I looked…really good. Eric's blood had healed and then some. Mostly though, I was glad I didn't have figure out how to hide those bite marks anymore.

Kenya was sitting at the kitchen table with Gran when I walked in.

"Hey Sookie, I hear you had a tough night."

"Yeah…it wasn't how I'd planned my evening."

Gran and Kenya both had cups of coffee in front of them and I poured one out for myself before sitting down.

"I was confused when I came home and didn't see Sookie's car in her normal spot," Gran said, with the air of a good storyteller, "but I opened her bedroom door and there she was, so I let her be."

"What time did you get back, Gran?"

"Only about half an hour ago. Aunt Linda and I had an early start this morning." She waved her hand like that was a normal thing.

Oh.

I gave her a sideways look. She didn't look particularly well rested.

_Later_, I thought. I needed to make more of an effort to help out with Linda. Jason should be helping too.

"So can you tell me what happened, Sookie?" Kenya asked. She took a small pad out from her inner jacket pocket with a pen.

"Well, it was around one-thirty or so when I left Merlotte's. Maybe a little later. I didn't check my watch but that's about the time I usually leave. The snow was coming down and getting heavier…" Since being woken up so suddenly, I hadn't worked on putting up the steel plates I thought of to block out the thoughts of others. Also, since I was home and used to Gran's mental signature after so many years, it was just a bit easier to block her out. Kenya though, was coming in pretty clear. She had already surveyed my car on her way here. "I saw something dart out in front of my headlights. I'm not sure what…it was real big. There was another car a ways back," I added when Kenya's thoughts focused on the damaged rear of my car. "I think they hit me when I swerved and tried to brake. It was all so fast."

Kenya was watching me as I talked; her pad empty of writing in front of her. Shouldn't she be writing this down?

"You don't remember if the other car hit you or not?" She asked in disbelief.

"Like I said, it was really fast. The car fish-tailed and tipped and I hit my head pretty hard. I know I lost some time…"

"Sookie," Gran admonished, "why didn't you call me as soon as you got home? Or Jason?"

For obvious reasons there was no explaining the mess I would've returned to leaving a bewitched vampire and witchy-werewolf in Gran's kitchen to their own devices. There would also be no explaining how I was not even marginally hurt, thanks to whatever is in Eric's blood.

"I wasn't going to call you in the middle of the night to drive through the snow from Monroe, Gran. And Jason…" I sort of let that drift for a bit. He would probably have taken me to the hospital if I asked. If he was home, that is. "I didn't want him driving either. And besides, I'm fine. See?" I moved my head back and forth and showed my arms. "No cuts or big bruises."

"You could have called an ambulance once you got home...which was around when?"

"Oh, I guess sometime around three, I think." I would have sooner called Jason than an ambulance. Those cost money, I knew, and I didn't exactly have health insurance.

Kenya looked like she wanted to say something but instead looked down at her empty paper and started to write something. "There was no sign of another car," she said, after a minute of writing.

"I guess they didn't stop." I shrugged.

Gran tutted and made a remark about how no decent person would just keep driving. They must have been from the city.

Kenya ignored Gran's remark. "So something darts out in front of you, you don't know what, you swerve," she looked up from her writing with a questioning expression, "hit the break and another car maybe hits you. Then you lost consciousness. Is that about right?"

I nodded. "Yes."

"Do you remember what the other car looked like?"

I shook my head. "They had their high beams on. It was a dark color, a four door sedan, maybe."

"They? So there was more than one person in the car?"

"Yes," I said, not that it would really matter. I felt bad for Kenya because she'd have to put in the hours looking for the car and its occupants. "When I turned off on Hummingbird Road, I noticed the car still behind me. That's when I remember looking and seeing two people inside."

Kenya wisely thought something was missing from my story but she couldn't pin down what. It was the combined fact that I had no injuries and that my car was upright when there was obvious damaged to the driver's side.

"There was damage to the rear of your car," she said, "and the rear bumper is missing."

"Missing?" My memory of what happened to it was fuzzy. I remembered the Asian vampire, Kim Jade had a hold of it at one point.

Kenya nodded. "Couldn't find it anywhere. Kind of strange."

"Yeah, that is…weird."

Gran was riveted by all of this. "Wouldn't there be some marks on the ground? Or a piece of the other car?"

"Normally we might see some tire marks if Sookie did break hard, and probably something from the other car too. There was some paint, I'm assuming from the other car that scraped off on to yours." Kenya leaned back into the chair and sipped the coffee in front of her. "Unfortunately, the snow obscured any good tracks we could have looked at." She eyed me carefully.

"What?"

"Is there anything else you can remember?" Kenya was wondering if I could have possibly staged something for the insurance money. She thought we could use it.

"There wasn't much else that happened. It took me some time to walk the rest of the way back. It was dark…and I called Kevin after I got in." I finished off my cup of coffee. I wanted to eat something but I couldn't be bothered to get up. "Was my car moved already?"

"Yes." Kenya took out a white business card from her jacket pocket and handed it to me. "N.L. Auto-body Shop" was printed in a neat font with a name and phone number underneath it. "You can call there about it."

"Thanks," I said, wondering how much this would cost. "Kevin mentioned I wasn't the only one in an accident last night."

Kenya stood and let out a sigh. "Yeah. Last night was an odd one. Those kinds of hits aren't that common around here; there haven't been incidents of people hitting bucks in years."

Gran couldn't hide the surprise in her voice. "A buck? Good Lord, are they alright?"

"'Fraid not. One's in critical condition at Granger and the other didn't make it."

Her mouth covered in shock, Gran's head was spinning. "Was it anyone we know?"

"I don't think so. The license said 'Mark Stonebrook.' No one around here with that surname." My head whipped around to Kenya at the mention of Stonebrook. "License plates were from Arkansas."

"Maybe they were visiting someone for the holiday? Sookie?"

Belatedly, I heard Gran call my name. "Yes?"

"Are you alright, dear? You look like you've seen a ghost."

Kenya was eying me suspiciously.

"I'm okay. Just…thinking, I guess. That could have been me."

"You were really lucky last night." Kenya stated.

"I guess I was. Lucky." And the academy award goes too…

"Unfortunately for Mr. Stonebrook, his luck ran out."

"Was he the one that died? Of the pair, I mean?"

"Yes," she said and I got a terribly graphic visual when she stopped on her way in to confer with Andy.

He had been one of werewolves in the tattoo parlor.

Kenya put on her jacket that had been hanging on the back of her chair. "Thank you for the coffee, Mrs. Stackhouse. Sookie…" She felt something was off about everything I'd said to her but she had nothing to suggest anything different. "I'll be calling you in a day or two to come down and sign some paperwork. Meanwhile, I still think you should go to the hospital and get checked out. There could be some internal trauma."

Once Kenya left, Gran rounded on me. "I'm going to drive you to the hospital."

"Gran, I'm fine."

"No, I want a doctor to look at you."

"Why, so we can spend hundreds of dollars for a doctor and an x-ray machine to tell me I'm fine?"

"Some things are more important than money."

"I'm fine." Frustrated, I sighed. "I really am. I went to bed, I woke up. Nothing hurts. Nothing feels weird…" Thanks for that, Eric. "I don't need to go to a hospital."

We went to the hospital.

I didn't really have much of a choice now, without a car. Stupid vampire. Even getting hit, my car would have still been drivable if that damn Kim Jade hadn't flipped it over.

I had a lot to think about and between Gran and the doctors looking at my pupils, taking x-rays and checking me out for any internal injuries (and one insufferable tetanus shot later), there wasn't a lot of time for that.

So Mark Stonebrook was dead. Was he Marnie Stonebrook's husband? Brother? What was he doing on the outskirts of Bon Temps? He was a werewolf, but was he a witch too?

Did he know where I live? Does she, their packmaster-coven mistress know where I live? I watched Gran as she flipped through an issue of _Family Circle. _We were in the waiting area and my x-rays were due out any minute. I just wanted to crawl back into my bed. At least, if we had gone to the Granger hospital, I could have maybe found out who Mark Stonebrook's companion was. But with no injuries, the small Bon Temps one would suffice.

There was a payphone in an adjacent waiting area and I used that to call Philip Norris, the person listed on the business card of the auto-body shop. As he went down the list of repairs necessary to salvage my Nova a sinking feeling settled into my gut.

There was the cost of the tow. New door. New windows. New bumper. New left head and tail lights. The list went on. He told me he could write up an itemized list to bring to my insurance guy. I agreed to pick it up after we left the hospital. I told him I'd talk to my insurance agent and get back to him once I spoke with Greg Aubert, my insurer. I didn't have Greg's number on me so that would have to wait until we got home. Why had I thought going to Shreveport alone was a good idea?

Around one o'clock we finally left, all my tests confirming what I said. The doctors thought it was a miracle I hadn't been hurt at all, not even any bruised bone or cartilage. I was as healthy as a horse. On top of all of that, I'd had almost no problem pulling up my mental barriers to block out the dozens of minds that surrounded me in the hospital. They just slid right into place almost unconsciously.

Holy cow. Eric's blood was kind of amazing. Now how long would it last?

With the directions to Philip Norris's body shop safely in my purse, next to the hospital bill, which the lovely woman in the billing department informed could most likely be covered by my car insurance claim, Gran and I headed out.

Philip Norris came out to greet us when he heard Gran's car pulling up. There were a lot of people around Bon Temps with the name Norris so it was no surprise to find out this particular Norris had some relation to the others. He appeared to be in his late thirties with a scruffy beard and short, dark hair. He had overalls on that were stained with grease and probably other things from his garage work. He also could not be read. His mind was not unlike the werewolves from the other day but it was distinctly different. Wilder. He was definitely something "other."

"This is what they brought me," he said, guiding Gran and I to what was left of my Nova.

"Is there anything you can do for it?" Gran asked.

"Ma'am, with all due respect, it would be cheaper to buy a different car."

I sighed. "Maybe Jason knows someone who is selling."

"It's possible," she said.

In the light of day, the car really didn't look too good. I could see why Kenya was so skeptical. The damage wasn't entirely consistent with what I said, and at the same time it was. There was definitely evidence that I'd been hit. The driver's side door was gone though, and the whole left side was scraped up but the car was found sitting upright and not on its side. It wasn't really something I'd thought of when we left it last night.

I was in the process of collecting a few things from the glove compartment and the blanket from the backseat when he spoke.

"If you like, I can give you a good deal for the parts."

"Parts?"

"Oh, yeah. Lots of old cars in the area. I could definitely make use out of the scraps if you want to sell it."

"I'll keep that in mind."

Gran and Philip wandered off to his office while I looked around the garage. The tow had brought the other car here too and it was currently sitting outside with a find coating of snow on the roof. The front windshield was completely destroyed and the blood from Mark Stonebrook and his companion was all over the seats. The license plates did indeed say Arkansas.

Another piece of the puzzle fell resolutely into place. These witches had come from Arkansas. Working with vampires…Mathis has said they were "ours," so maybe Kim Jade was from Arkansas too.

Of course, Kim Jade didn't exactly look like he was from Arkansas. Then again, Eric didn't exactly appear to be from Louisiana. Not with that accent. Not for the first time, I wondered how old they both were; if it was true that vampires didn't age.

The glove box held no secrets except to say the car was a rental. That was smart, I guess. They hadn't planned to be here long. With nothing of interest in the backseat, I hit the button that popped the trunk open.

Well. Okay, then.

Andy had obviously seen no reason to open the trunk when it was clear what happened to the two people. Inside the trunk, aside from the general extra tire and jack, was a black garbage bag filled with silver chain, gloves, duct tape and rope. There were other things. Baggies with what looked like dried herbs, some candles that had been used partially at one point in the past.

Were witch, may travel.

What I was really looking for was a handy book conveniently titled "Curses and Cures for Vampires So They Can Go Back Home." No luck there.

I glanced back at the office to find Gran and Philip still chatting away. Quietly, I took the garbage bag and sneaked it out to Gran's car, putting it in her trunk. When I walked back the two were emerging from Philip's office and he was chuckling lightly.

Gran certainly had a way with conversation.

"What were you two chatting about?"

Philip scratched his beard ruefully. "Your grandmother has some funny stories. I'll ask around, see if anyone's looking to sell something, Ma'am. Miss Stackhouse."

"What was that all about?" I asked Gran when we were back on the road again.

"Did I ever tell you about the time your grandfather decided to take part in a tractor race?"

"Uh…no?"

"Oh, yes, he was quite young, maybe sixteen or seventeen. He got into an argument with another boy older than him. I can't remember over what but they decided the dispute would be settled over a race. Both tractors ended up in a ditch and your grandfather ended up with a broken ankle."

"Oh…kay?" Not sure what the point of this story is.

"The other boy…I think his name was Emmanuel, the tractor tipped over when it fell and landed right on him." Gran kept her eyes very steadily on the road. "He died."

Oh. "That's terrible."

Gran hummed. "Yes." She had diverted me. That wasn't the story she told Philip, but it wasn't any less true. Since she didn't want me to know what they spoke about, I left it at that.

When we got home Gran handed me the list of repairs that I needed to bring to Greg Aubert. She changed into something more comfortable and made us some lunch out of some leftover ham while I dressed for work. I called Greg's office to see if he could see me today and his receptionist, Marge, who handled all his appointments, told me he could if I hurried. He was due to leave for a meeting in an hour. I packed up a sandwich in tinfoil with an apple for later and took off in Gran's car.

I was exhausted and I hadn't even set foot inside Merlotte's for my shift.

I kissed Gran on the cheek as I left.

"Be careful tonight, Sookie," she said as I reached the door.

"I will," I said, looking back. As long as no other vampires decided to tip my car over. Or try and kidnap me… "Love you, Gran."

When I got into Gran's car and started the engine I had to stop for a minute and sit back. I took a deep breath.

I hoped I'd make it home tonight in one piece.

Marge was a good receptionist. She had been working for Greg Aubert for a number of years now and liked her work. She was a very organized person and liked things a certain way.

"Hi, Marge." I said when I walked in. Greg's office was small, with a front reception area that held a couch and some chairs. Greg's personal office was in the back and adjacent was what I assumed was a bathroom and storage area.

"Miss Stackhouse," she said coolly, "you can have a seat and I'll let Mr. Aubert know you're here."

"Thank you, and thank you for managing to fit me in. I'm sure he's very busy."

"He is. Especially in the last few days."

I took a seat on the leather couch while Marge finished up what she was typing. A number of clients had recently switched to Aubert insurance. This made Marge very happy. People kept saying he was the luckiest agent in town.

This was all news to me. Apparently, I was the first person in over a year to file a claim on my insurance. This didn't seem to make Marge very happy.

"Sookie Stackhouse!" Greg bellowed good-naturedly about five minutes later. "I haven't seen you in a good while. Though I can't say I'm happy to see you given the circumstances. I'm so glad you weren't injured." We shook hands and I nearly jumped back. Greg was very worried. About what, I wasn't sure.

I slapped on a very wide smile and let go of Greg's hand. "Thanks for seeing me on such short notice."

He took a step back and eyed me warily. "Yes…come on back and let's get you sorted out, okay? I think Marge told you I have a meeting later?"

The meeting had him far more nervous than the strange smile I was giving him. Something about it was off.

"Of course, yes, she did. Hopefully I won't take up too much of your time." Then, Greg did that "gentlemanly" thing of indicating with his arm toward his office and placing the other briefly on my shoulder.

Greg was more than worried. He was downright afraid of something. Strange.

"Everything alright, Mr. Aubert?" I asked when he closed the door to his office. It was sumptuously decorated in a lovely cream color with white crown molding. There was a large L-shaped walnut desk taking up half of the space with one of those large executive-type leather chairs behind it. The visitor chairs in front of the desk were a more structured, yet comfortable, dark brown leather. On the desk side that faced a wall was a large computer monitor and keyboard. The part that faced the visitors held mostly papers, a large desk calendar, a phone and a lamp. On the other side of the office was a small sofa set with a coffee table in the same color pattern of chocolate brown.

"Of course, why wouldn't it be?" he asked, taking a seat behind his massive desk after he indicated one of the visitor chairs for me.

"I suppose I've ruined your long standing record now."

"Oh, you've heard about that? Some of the other agents can be a little jealous of all my good luck." _Probably not so good now…I need to leave a letter for Christy in case I don't come home._

"Yes, well you know my grandmother thought the same when she signed the house policy with you. She heard all those stories; everyone in Bon Temps who's used your agency never seems to have any trouble," I said. "She's a bit superstitious like that."

_It's not superstition when it's true. She'll need one for her new car…one for her house, maybe…the incantation's already set…_"Sometimes a little superstition can be a good thing," Greg said.

I stared at him. Greg Aubert was a witch!

"Miss Stackhouse?"

I swallowed. "Um, yes. I brought a few things with me…" Rifling through my purse, I brought out the hospital bill and the itemized list from Philip Norris.

"Right." He pulled a folder over to him and flicked it open. "I had Marge find your policy for me after you called." He pressed a button on the phone. "Marge?"

"Yes, Mr. Aubert?" I could hear Marge through the door. I don't know why he bothered to use the intercom.

He called Marge in to make copies of the papers I'd brought. "I still need a copy of the police report once that is ready, but I can take care of the hospital bill today and get started on setting you up with a rental until you find something permanent. As for a payout, that may take a few days to determine."

I was genuinely surprised. "That's faster than I imagined it would take."

"Thankfully, this claim is fairly straightforward. You'll have to make an appointment to come back in a few days. I'm sorry we can't take care of all of this now but…"

"You have a meeting, yes, I know," I said. "With some witches."


	9. Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

A/N: So sorry everyone for the long delay. Here is the next chapter and I hope it's been worth the wait. Super-duper thanks to Chicpea for being an excellent beta and pointing out all my inconsistencies.

Big thanks also to everyone who has put this story and/or me on alert and special thanks to those who take a minute to review. I appreciate it greatly, and how else do I know if people like the story, right?

I am also considering starting up a contest in January, tentatively titled "Sookie's Great Adventure." (Think _Bill and Ted_ or "Two Blondes.") All storys would need the action/adventure as one part of the genre. So if people are interested in helping out in any capacity, either writing for it, or as a judge, or even in banner design, please let me know. I have some super rare Sookie Stackhouse swag that might go to the winner.

xxx

To sum up, since it's been a while: its three years before the Great Revelation. Eric has been cursed by witches and has been wandering around Northern Louisiana for about 2 weeks. Sookie finds him on New Year's Eve. He hasn't encountered any other vampires. Werewolves (who are also part of the witch coven) are hunting him. They've attacked one of his businesses, killing everyone in the tattoo parlor he owns, to Sookie's horror, since she is a witness. One of the wolves follows her from the tattoo parlor and tries to kidnap her with the help of a vampire from ….somewhere. It is unclear yet to Sookie as she and Eric scramble for clues as to the witches whereabouts and motives. Unknown vampires are in Louisiana. Eric kills the unknown vampire while they capture the werewolf and bring him back to Sookie's house for interrogation. Eric has also given Sookie some of his blood to recover from her injuries that resulted from the crash. The werewolf reveals a takeover is eminent and Eric is not the only vampire to be cursed. The next day, Sookie discovers via Kenya that during the night another car via "very bad luck," hit a buck. In this car was Mark Stonebrook and another as yet unidentified person. Sookie and Gran visit the hospital and auto shop where both cars were towed and after dropping Gran off, Sookie makes a visit to her insurance agent, Greg Aubert, who has just been discovered as a witch.

* * *

Chapter 9 – Double, Double, Toil and Trouble

Greg paled. "Witches, Miss Stackhouse? I'm not sure I understand you."

I folded my hands in my lap. "I think you understand me perfectly."

Greg had gotten up in an attempt to show me out the door but now he sat back down again. He stayed silent for a long time, staring at me. I had full surround sound into the thoughts that were zooming through his head.

"You're not a witch," he said. "I would recognize it if you were."

"I'm not a witch."

"People in this town have said some funny things about you," he said. _Crazy, slow, unnatural , weird. Funny eyes and manic smile, it's no wonder. _

I felt the smile he just called manic slowly move down until it formed nothing but a grim line. "I don't think they're particularly funny."

Greg didn't meet my eyes. The things that people said, the things that were running through his head right now weren't funny at all. He was trying to figure out if I was psychic. That's what he heard from Marge who heard it from Milton Buckley who works at the Walmart in town.

"I'm not psychic either," I said calmly. I knew I was scaring him, maybe unjustly but, just this once, it might be good for someone to be scared of me.

His eyes grew wide and he shot out of his chair. Greg stared down at his desk thinking, maybe if he didn't look me in the eyes I wouldn't be able to read his mind like he knew I was doing.

"Mr. Aubert," I said, picking a piece of pilled cotton off my black Merlotte's pants. "I need to know about the witches you're meeting. Please."

"Why should I tell you anything?" He didn't know how they – which I reasoned meant the witches - had found out about him. Living in such a religious, southern Baptist town, he is very careful about his practices. He would lose a lot of clients if people assumed he was some kind of devil worshiper.

"Have you heard any of the local news yet, today?"

"You're talking about the other car crash?"

I nodded. "The man that died, specifically. Mark Stonebrook."

Greg ran his hand through his hair and slumped back into his desk chair. His tie drastically clashed with his suit color. "Doesn't ring a bell."

"What's the name of the person who contacted you?"

He was worried about saying anything. "She's threatened to curse my family."

"I think she's a little too preoccupied right now to worry about your family, if it is the person I think it is."

He paled. _Did she just read my mind? _"What do you mean?"

"Tell me her name first."

"Hallow," he said, spitting the name out as if it had a bitter taste. "That's what she calls herself, anyway."

"Her real name is Marnie Stonebrook."

His eyes narrowed. "How do you know that?"

I looked past him to the wall where a painting of Lady Justice with her scales rested. "I think it's better if you don't know. Though I can say one of her witches – coven members, is dead."

Greg chewed on that for a moment. "So Mark Stonebrook is her…?"

"Brother," I shrugged. "Husband…I don't know; they're related somehow."

"And he's dead."

"Yep."

"Huh. From hitting a buck. Not much of that happening around here."

"It sure is rotten luck," I agreed.

"Not for me. Or you, I'd wager."

"I'm not overjoyed at the loss of life, Mr. Aubert, though I'm glad he can't hurt anyone again. It does seem like good luck likes to find its way to you."

"No more than anyone else," he said, despite feeling very guilty about something.

I was trying to get a read on what he was feeling guilty about; it was so mixed with his work activities. "You make spells, don't you?"

Greg's eyes shot up to mine. After a moment he looked away again. "Yes," he said. Greg had been giving everyone he insured spelled items to keep with them. Lucky rabbits' feet, usually, for their car or home. "It's not like I'm doing anything bad! I'm protecting my clients."

I started to say something but stopped. "It isn't my place to pass judgment," I said. "No one is getting hurt, at least for now."

"That's right. No one is getting hurt. That's the whole point."

That and for you to keep collecting on everyone's monthly payments. There was something still niggling at me. "None of this explains how they knew you were a witch."

Greg leaned back in his chair, pondering. "There's only one other person in this town who I'm certain is a witch, or at least some type of practitioner. I could sense it in her. It's not very strong, but it's there."

"What does that mean?"

"Hallow…the Stonebrook woman, they must have sensed it somehow, the same way as me. My abilities at witchcraft and pretty strong," he added.

Not to toot your own horn or anything. "Of course," I said, smiling widely. "What did she want from you if they went to the trouble of threatening your family?"

"To join her coven…to be part of whatever she was doing. That was over a week ago. She and another came here. They even made an appointment," he laughed.

"So you wouldn't be prepared."

"Right. Why should I have anything ready other than the normal protective charms I use on clients?" He fiddled with a small red rabbit's foot, flipping it between his fingers like I'd see Jason do with quarters. "They want every capable witch to join them for whatever it is they've got going. The ones that don't…"

"I've seen what she's capable of," I told him. "I don't doubt that she would curse your family if she could, but I think it's the last thing on her mind right now."

"Why's that?" He didn't think that at all. He was worried for his family and I couldn't blame him one little bit.

"Well, her brother or husband is dead. There was another person in the car too, who isn't doing real well either and I'm assuming that person's a witch too considering and…"

How detailed was I going to get into Eric's situation?

"My accident?"

Greg's eyes widened. "That was her?"

"Not her specifically, but one of the people who works for her."

"Why didn't you report that to the police?"

I sighed. "There are a lot of reasons why, but the point is that another one of her witches is gone."

I saw Greg's estimation of me change dramatically. I had already gone from "that dumb girl with the weird smile," to "psychic" and now it seemed like I was bordering on "dangerous, don't mess with."

"It's been a couple of weeks since she started her little reign of terror, right?" I added up the time Eric has been cursed and tacked on a few days that they would have probably used to gather their forces. "She must be getting desperate."

"I would be."

"You can't meet those witches, Greg."

He rubbed his chin. "What do I do, then?"

I shrugged. "Stay here. Keep working. If you have any kind of…magical defense, now would be the time to find out."

"What about you? Where do you fit into all of this?"

"I…she…hurt someone I know. I'm trying to help that person out, if I can."

"Must be someone special to get so caught up in all this."

I didn't know if "special" was the right word to use, but I guess it was on the list. I glanced at my watch. It was definitely time to get going if I didn't want to be late.

"I have to get to work," I said. Greg was relieved that I'd be leaving. I frowned at that. _Come on!_ I'd just saved his butt from going somewhere that he might get killed. "I still need you to tell me something, though."

Resigned, he nodded.

"Where were you going to meet them?"

Greg gave me a long, leveled look before he turned in his chair and pulled a crisp looking leather bound date book from a drawer. There were all sorts of papers and thin colored post-its sticking out from various places. Opening the front cover revealed a small pocket woven into the leather. He pulled out a piece of paper and handed it to me.

It was an address in Shreveport with a time underneath. Was this where the witches were?

"I don't need the address anymore, right?"

"I would hope not," I replied.

I stood up, swinging my purse back onto my shoulder. Greg stood up too, ready to see me out.

"Thank you for seeing me, Mr. Aubert."

We shook hands and Greg said, "No, Sookie. I suppose I should be the one thanking you."

I smiled – my natural one this time - as we took to the hallway.

Marge wore her perpetual scowl as we entered the reception area, greeting us with a curt nod as she carried on whatever activity she was doing at her desk.

"There is one other thing," I said as he held the door open for me. I lowered my voice to avoid Marge's ears and looked Greg in the eyes. "Do you know how to undo spells?"

He glanced back at Marge and stepped outside with me. "What kind of spell?"

"A curse?" I asked with hope in my voice.

He thought for a moment as we walked. "That's tricky business. It depends how bad the curse is; how intricate. Normally I'd say you need the witch who cast it to undo it, but it's not impossible." I could tell he was thinking heavily about it. There were a few books he could consult.

Okay, that was good news. "But could you do it?"

He shrugged his shoulders. "I have no idea. I've never tried lifting a curse." Insecurity coated him like a blanket making him doubt his abilities more than he did a few minutes ago. He started to tick off items that, I guess were related to curses. He wasn't lying; he had never tried to lift a curse.

Damn. At least the address was something. A big something at that.

"Alright. I guess I'll see you tomorrow then."

"Tomorrow?" He went blank for a moment before he remembered. "Right…tomorrow. You'll be back here."

I heaved another internal sigh as I started Gran's car up. As relieved as Greg was to not have to meet the witches, he didn't want to see me again, either. It was with heavy thoughts of who really ever was happy to see me (not many) that I drove over to Merlotte's.

The temperature was starting to dip for the day while the sun sank lower in the sky. Sam had gone and salted all the walking paths around the bar to keep any ice and snow at bay. It was a little more work for Terry, when he comes in to clean in the morning but Sam didn't want anyone falling or breaking anything in Merlotte's if it could be avoided. All of us working when Sam hauled a big bag of salt into the storeroom right before New Year's got treated to an eye and earful. The eyeful was welcome of course, by pretty much everyone. Sam is a good looking man. With that came the complaining about having clean up salt from every corner of the bar because it would inevitably get everywhere. This reduced to general complaining about driving in bad weather and partial glee at the prospect of actual snow.

I was a few minutes late when I stowed my purse in Sam's desk and stepped out into the main dining area. I'd have to wait to eat until my break but that was fine. With all the excitement going on, my appetite has been the furthest from my mind. Charlsie was bringing a pitcher of beer over to our local dentist, Virginia Park, and her two associates. Sam gave me a raised eyebrow in response to my tardiness. Charlsie just about ran over when she spotted me, eager to get going and pick up her kids. After filling me in on the status of her tables, she was out the door. Dawn was already working in her section.

"You alright Cher?" Sam asked when my last table trickled out for the time being. It was still a little early for dinner and the only two non-employees here were Jane Bodehouse and a delivery man whose van was parked out front. Both of them were sitting at the bar.

"I'm okay, Sam."

He had been polishing the same spot on the bar for a few minutes now. "I heard about your accident."

"Oh?" I took out some fresh napkins to fold for the tables.

"Kevin and Kenya came in for lunch. I figure we'll have a full house tonight wanting all the details."

Great. "Glad I could be good for business, Sam," I said, cheerfully.

"Hey, you know that's not what I mean."

"I know. I guess I just don't like being whispered about, you know?" I glanced up from my folding to find him staring at me. "What? Is there something on my face?"

He tilted his head as if he were trying to work through a particularly difficult problem. "You look different today. Did you do something?"

"You mean beside get into a car accident?"

He squinted. "Your hair is different. Lighter."

"It's probably just the lighting," I said and grabbed the folded napkins to place on the tables before he could question me any further.

I busied myself making sure my section was spotless until I needed the big jar of salt to refill the shakers with. Sam was still behind the bar when I passed by him to get the jar. Since I was doing my best to focus on keeping my mental barriers up, which wasn't actually that hard today thanks to Eric, I wasn't prepared for Sam grabbing my arm and pulling me toward him.

"Sam? What are you doing?"

He stared at me for a moment and I spared a look around the room. Everyone was looking at us. He must have realized it too because he let go of my arm and stepped back. "I need to speak with you in my office." Then he proceeded to march out from behind the bar to staff area.

I cleared my throat and walked through the doors that led to the bathrooms and past them to the end of the hall where Sam's office is.

He was pacing when I walked in.

"What's going on, Sam?"

He gave me a guarded look before he responded. I didn't want to listen to Sam's thoughts, not that I'd ever really tried; he wasn't a strong broadcaster, but he was making it very tempting right about now.

"What happened to you last night?"

"I thought you heard the story from Kevin and Kenya?"

"I'd like to hear it from you."

"It was a hit and run. I got knocked off to the side and had to walk back to the house." Maybe I should start keeping a tally of all the people I've lied to the past four days. I could bring it with me to church on Sunday.

"You didn't…pass out or lose any time when it happened?"

"What?"

Sam kept starting to say something but stopped each time. He was terribly worried. I could feel it radiating off him. That was when I heard it. Just the single word because he was focused on it so clearly. "Vampire." He knew about vampires.

I dropped my shields completely to listen to him. How did he know? I couldn't figure it out; Sam's mind was as opaque as a dark cloud, which was plenty strange to me.

"You're okay, right? You don't have a concussion or injury something like that?"

"Fit as a fiddle. No lost time, either," I said, to put his mind at ease. It didn't, though, and he was still concerned.

"That's amazing," he said in disbelief. "Not a scratch on you."

I nodded. "Just lucky, I guess." Yep, that's me. Lady Luck. "I should probably head back out."

"Right."

I turned and went back into the dining area. The night started to move along as customers wandered in from the cold for dinner. A car accident wasn't the most unheard of event happening in our town but two in one night generated a fair amount of gossip. With there being one confirmed casualty and one serious injury, it was high up on the topics of conversation. I was too, apparently. Thoughts tended to shift my way when I passed by tables that I couldn't keep out. When people are actively thinking at me or about me, it's harder to block than the simpler stream of consciousness. People couldn't help it, and they didn't know what kind of effect their direct thinking had on me.

"I'm glad nothing happened to you, Sookie," said Cindy Lenier when I brought her chicken strips. Cindy was twenty-three with pretty brown hair and dark eyes. She had a job at the local Sonic, along with the two girlfriends sitting with her, Loretta and Denise.

"Thanks, Cindy. Me too."

Just then I felt myself spun around into a hug. All I saw was a mop of curly brown hair until I leaned back. "Rene?"

"You sure gave us a scare, girl. We don't want nothing happening to you."

I laughed. "Thanks, Rene. I'm good, really."

Rene took a seat opposite his sister and leaned back to grab a menu from the booth behind him. He was still wearing his work vest on top of his winter coat. "Arlene's not here today, is she?"

"Nope, she was in earlier. You're in the clear."

"Good." Rene was Arlene's second husband, now recently divorced and currently not very welcome in Arlene's presence. You could say they were on the outs and no one seemed to know how long it would last. They fought, and then they made up. A lot.

"I'll come back in a few to get your order. What can I get you to drink meanwhile?"

Unfortunately, getting his drink meant talking to Sam and he was still acting a bit funny towards me. He poured Rene's Dixie Draft without a word and set it in front of me. Sam knew something and there was no delicate way to ask him how he knew about vampires.

I brought Rene's drink over and took his order for a burger Lafayette and fries, dropping it off at the kitchen window.

There was a fair amount of speculation among the customers about Mark Stonebrook. No one had heard of him, or his companion, Thomas Yaxley, who was currently in the Granger ICU. I couldn't imagine what the chatter would be like if they knew what was in his trunk, the contents of which were now hidden the trunk of Gran's car.

A few people asked for details about what happened to my car. I stuck to the hit and run story and kept the details to a minimum. Annabelle Loudermilk offered to keep her eyes out if anyone was selling a decent used car. I thanked her for that.

The rest of the night passed uneventfully for the most part, with most people clearing out early to avoid the steadily dropping temperature. Sam and I didn't exchange words much except when it was related to drinks or food for the customers. Dawn and I cleared up our stations and put all the chairs and stools up so Terry could mop in the morning. Sam wiped down the bar while Lafayette and D'Eriq cleaned up the kitchen and put away any supplies. When I counted up my tips I realized the amount was a much larger sum than normal for a typical weekday night. Bon Temps might be a small town but the people here do try and look after one another.

For a second, I looked around for my car in the parking lot, before remembering I was using Gran's car. I spotted it right where I left it and got in as Dawn drove off. Backing up out of my space and turning around, the headlights fell on the shaggy looking collie that sometimes hung around Merlotte's. I'd taken to giving it a few scraps from the kitchen every now and then. The collie was staring at me as I drove past it. "Tina would not be happy if I took you home." Maybe Sam would let it into his trailer so he wouldn't freeze.

Tonight there were no surprises waiting for me on Hummingbird Road. I held my breath until I couldn't hold it any longer while I drove. There were no bodies on the ground, no shapes in woods and no cars following me. Just me and the dark road.

My mind relaxed as I went up the driveway. Eric wasn't there when I parked, not that I should have expected him to be there, but I felt my shoulders drop a little all the same. Maybe be I should have stopped to check the burned out house on my way back.

Except he knows where I live.

I pulled the trash bag of kidnapping tools out of the trunk and brought them up over to the little gardening shed Grandpa Mitchell build some decades ago. He'd put up a big pegboard inside and outlined all the tools that currently hung there, waiting to be used at the first sign of spring. I left the bag in the corner of the shed; I'd figure out what to do with it tomorrow.

Gran was still up when I got inside, trying to read one of her Danielle Steel novels in her bedroom unsuccessfully. She liked to wait up for me normally, but tonight she was especially anxious.

"How did everything go with Mr. Aubert?" She asked when I sat down on the edge of her bed.

"Not bad, actually. I have to go back tomorrow to fill out a few more things but it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. I'll be able to get a rental until I get the money together for my own."

"That's wonderful, dear. I'm sure there's something we can do to save up quickly for that. Every one of the DGD members called me up to find out if you were alright. They'd all heard, of course."

Of course. "I know, there were a fair few in Merlotte's tonight asking about it."

"I wish you had called me right after it happened."

"And have you rush back here in the middle of the night in the snow? I know that's what you'd do."

"I'm your grandmother, Sookie. That's what grandmothers do," she said, with ire in her voice.

"I'm sorry I didn't call you, Gran, but I wouldn't change it. I won't risk you skidding off the road in the middle of the night." With that I stood up. "I'm going to shower the beer and burger smell off me and head to bed." I leaned over and gave her a kiss on the forehead. "Night, Gran."

I hadn't exactly eased Gran's concerns but she didn't say anything. She didn't have to. When my parents died, it was while they were driving in less than optimal weather conditions. Whenever Jason and I would have to drive in poor weather that would always be in the forefront of her mind. The same was true of Gran. Jason and I both worried about her driving at night, even more so in bad weather.

In the bathroom I stripped off my Merlotte's uniform and turned up the hot water to let the steam fill the room. While the hot water worked the knots out of my back, my mind wandered to all the information I gathered today. Since coming across Eric on the road, my life has gone through a whirlwind of activity the likes of which hadn't happened since I was seven. Even those memories are bordering on fuzzy at this point.

I felt a bit like Nancy Drew, solving the mystery of the amnesiac vampire. Tara had read _The Babysitter's Club_ series one summer and I'd read _The Nancy Drew Files_. Then we swapped. One character's father from _Babysitter's_ had died in a car crash. That was one of the few things I remembered from reading them.

I toweled off and dried my hair as quickly as I could before getting into bed. There was a lot to tell Eric about what I'd learned today. I hated to admit that I was a little disappointed he wasn't around when I got home as my mind drifted to what he could be doing. Maybe he didn't want to come after I'd rebuked him the night before for killing Mathis.

Of course. He'd need blood too. That sobered up any desire to know what he was doing with his night.

I was in the middle of dreaming about Merlotte's. Instead of selling burgers Sam wanted to start a disco but only Jazz music would play there. Jane Bodhouse was telling me about the wonders of tomato flavored vodka when I heard a distinct tapping. I turned around to see Sam typing away at a big, old typewriter on top of the bar. One of those ones with the old fashioned round keys. He asked me to get him some more paper from the back and as I walked away the sound of tapping only got louder. As my darkened bedroom came back into sight, the sound continued at an even pace. It took a minute to wake up fully and realize it wasn't a typewriter at all.

There was a big vampire outside my window.

"What are you doing out here?" I asked him when I opened my window, meeting a chilly gust of air.

"Waiting for you to invite me in." He raised his eyebrows. There were ice crystals in his tangled hair.

"Please, come in," I said, making a sweeping gesture with my hand. Watching his large frame climb through my window I felt like I was fifteen, sneaking boys into my room. It all felt a bit silly. Then again, I'd never snuck any boys into my room when I was fifteen. The boys in high school didn't exactly want anything to do with me.

"Do you know there is a dog wandering around your woods?"

"A dog?" I questioned, unable to keep the surprise out of my voice.

"Or maybe not a dog. It growled at me." He shut the window behind him.

"What did it look like?" Terry's Catahoula might have gotten out again.

"Long fur, white with some brown and black spots."

"Sounds like the dog that hangs around the back of Merlotte's sometimes." Had it followed my car all the way here?

Eric's eyes swept around the room quickly before landing on me. "This is nice."

"Thank you." The ice was starting to melt from his hair and he was dripping onto the carpet. He looked…flushed almost. "Your cheeks are red. Can the cold do that to you?"

He glanced in the mirror above my dresser and touched one of the cheeks in question. "Ah, no. I fed before I came to see you."

"Oh."

"If something is to happen again, I want to be at my strongest."

"Right, that makes sense." He had fought another vampire and given me blood. "I'm going to get you a towel. Just…stay there. And don't make any noise; my Gran is down the hall."

He gave me a quizzical look at the notion of him making noise before I turned marched off to the bathroom for a towel.

When I came back he was quietly observing the few picture frames on my dresser. "Your family?"

I nodded and handed him the towel. "Did you bathe in the creek, or something?"

"I did. I've been exploring your village."

"Town."

"What?"

"They're called towns here, not villages. Did you find anything interesting?" I pulled a flat brush out of my bureau and offered it to him. His hair was tangled and messy from the creek water and the cold.

"Would you do it?" He asked, indicating the brush.

I looked at the flat, oval shaped brush in my hands and bit my lip. "Sure. Come sit down on the floor."

I sat down on the bed and Eric sat on the floor against my legs with his back toward me. This all felt strangely intimate as I began to untangle his hair.

"You were worried about me."

"When?"

"When you didn't see me tonight."

I paused my brushing. "I didn't know if you were mad at me or not about killing the werewolf-witch, Mathis."

"At first I was but I'm not anymore."

I started to brush again. "What made you change your mind?"

He turned sideways so he could look at me. "You are not used to this."

"You mean witches and vampires and werewolves? No, not used to them," I quipped.

"Yes, that, but also to death."

"And you are? Even without remembering anything?"

At that Eric sat quietly for a moment. "I am sure I have killed many during my life as a vampire, even though I do not remember it, but I do remember the ones I've killed since my new memories began. I remember killing the other wolves who were tracking me. The fighting," he smiled at what he was remembering, "the fighting was good, instinctual, I knew that I knew how to defend myself. I am a survivor, I am sure."

"You definitely are."

I continued to brush his hair until all the knots were out and his hair was dry. It was very soothing for the both of us, I imagine. I filled him in on everything I learned today.

"So the relation to the were-bitch is dead. That is good news."

"Very. Her support seems to be dwindling."

"She can't hold out much longer without reinforcements. She's vulnerable now with her numbers depleted."

"There is still the one that's in the hospital now. He's alive."

"Where is this hospital?"

"About forty minutes from here. I don't really know what kind of state he's in now, just that he's alive."

"We should pay him a visit then. He might know something useful."

"You mean…go _to _the hospital? At night?" No, that had bad idea written all over it.

"Yes."

"I don't know. There are a lot people around and he might not even be awake. What is someone recognizes you from the posters?"

"I will take my chances. If someone recognizes me I can make them forget."

While I had personally never seen him make someone actively forget an event, he was able to manipulate them into a type of hypnosis. "It's still risky."

"There are no other options, are there?"

"Well…no, I guess not. There is the greater possibility he would be alone, unlike the address in Shreveport."

"What of this address you found?"

"I don't know. It could just be a place Greg was going to meet them or it could be their home base."

"I would love nothing more than find the witch there and rip off her head."

You just had to admire that stalwart willingness to fight. "There is no telling how many could be there waiting. It's too dangerous to go there now." I was secretly glad he didn't know how to get there on his own.

"Tomorrow night, we will visit this Thomas Yaxley, then we will know."

With a heavy sigh, I agreed. We didn't have much else to go on at the moment. I didn't know how many witches Marnie Stonebrook had remaining at her disposal nor if any other vampires were working with them. Until we knew that, treading carefully was key.

We talked well into the night until I told Eric I needed to sleep. He didn't make a move to go back out the window though.

"Can I stay with you until before the dawn?"

I hesitated. Was he going to do for five more hours? "I guess."

He closed the blind when I shut off the light and made to climb into bed with me.

"Um, I don't think this bed was made for two people." It was a twin bed, after all.

"That can be remedied," he said as he climbed in.

He lay on his side looking at me while I was on my back. "There aren't many pictures of people in your room," he said.

"Most of my family passed some time ago." I had a picture with Tara, and one with JB from our senior prom but that was about it, outside family.

"Do you miss them?"

"Sometimes. It's hard to remember them now; they died when I was so young. I do miss my Grandfather, though. He was a good man."

"Your life would be very different if they lived."

"Maybe. My mother…she was not an easy woman. She loved my dad very much, you know? I think more than she loved Jason or me. She didn't believe –" I caught myself.

"What didn't she believe?"

"In me. In the things I could do, what I would tell her."

I could only make out the shadow of Eric's frame in the dark but I realized that it was comforting, as comforting as the silence of his mind. He was quite for a long time before he spoke and I had dozed off in the interim.

I heard it in only the faintest of whispers. Maybe I dreamed it. "There are things you can do. You are unique, even if I can't understand how."

I never would have imagined I could sleep so soundly with a vampire in my bed.


	10. Actually, That's My Assistant

A/N: *Waves* Hello! Yes, it has been a while. Yes, I have not been very good at replying to everyone's reviews. I will try to rectify that in the future.

Because I have such a busy schedule at the moment, my darling beta Chicpea is moving to the forefront and picking up up the pen (keyboard) for the second half of this story so that it does not die in the section of half completed fics. Chicpea and I have discussed the remainder of this story at length and where I have intended for it to go. I'm confident she's going to do a bang up job on the rest of the story, meanwhile I will continue in beta duty and adding bits where necessary.

So, without further adieu:

* * *

Catching up on Dead Memories:

**In chapter 1...**

Sookie had just completed her first New Year's Eve shift working at Merlotte's – months before the Great Revelation. On the way home, she nearly ran over a tall blonde vampire playing possum in the road. Only after feeding on her did he realize she couldn't be glamoured. Scared but intrigued, she discovered that he had no memory of who or where he was, and had been functioning solely on instinct for the past two weeks. His clothes were ragged and filthy owing, he claimed, to fight he'd been in with some wolves. He let her leave, but followed her home. Taking some pity on him, she left some of her brother's old clothes and a blanket out on the porch.

**In chapter 2...**

Since she worked the holiday shift, Sookie has the day off. Gran's cooking pies for Jason and Linda (recently through her first round of chemo) and sends Sookie to Walmart for ingredients. While there, she encounters an opaque-minded biker feeling sad while buying a dress shirt. She also picks up some other clothing items for the vampire. Before leaving, she spots a missing poster for Eric Northman.

Suspicious of the whole situaion, she calls the number from a pay phone and claims to have seen Eric in another city. After asking a few questions about she becomes confident that whoever posted the flier had something to do with Eric getting amnesia. Back at home, Gran divvies up her cooking, then leaves to deliver Linda her portion. Eric turns up on Sookie's porch.

**In chapter 3...**

Eric wants to know how Sookie realized he had followed her home. She used telepathy, but doesn't admit it. Because Sookie is somehow different from other humans, Eric believes she might be the key to curing him. She shows him the poster, then looks him up in the phone book. She invites him in and quickly realizes the state of his feet and helps him tend to them. Afterward, while discussing his general predicament, he inadvertently reveals the existence of werewolves.

Eric wanted Sookie to take him to his house immediately, but she offered to do surveillance the following day instead. He took a shower, accidentally giving her a good look at his gorgeous naked body. He makes it clear that he is attracted to her as well. She takes him to a partially-burned out house which can serve as his daytime resting place, a much better option than going to ground. Eric expresses gratitude for all that Sookie is doing for him.

**In chapter 4...**

Eric wants to know more about Sookie's life, so they talk until Gran comes home. He kisses her on the forehead before vanishing into the night. The following day, Sookie goes to Eric's house. When no one shows up for a couple of hours, she risks getting closer. The lucky discovery of his spare key gains her access to the inside.

Rifling through the paperwork in his home office, she discovers that he is involved in a number of businesses, including nightclubs and casinos. She also finds a ledger written in Eric's private shorthand, and realizes that it contains a list of the vampires who pay Eric money. Naturally, she concludes that Eric is a vampire mobster, and someone had been trying to take him out. That's not enough to scare her off though, she's too intrigued by this supernatural creature.

She takes more of Eric's own clothes, and a cooler of medical-supply blood from his fridge. On the way home, she stops off at the tattoo parlor listed as one of his business holdings. There are two people inside who state they have a message for Eric Northman, then they transform into wolves and kill all of the employees.

**In chapter 5...**

Sookie fled the scene, completely overwhelmed at both the carnage, and the intense fear felt vicariously through the humans as they were savaged. Back at home Gran informs Sookie that the incident has already been on the news. She also asks if Jason has been sneaking his laundry in, as she's discovered some of the men's clothes.

Sookie has an understandably bad day at work, and has to suffer the additional humiliation of the customers chatting freely about her status as the town crazy-woman. It starts to snow, and that night after closing she is run off the road by an Asian vampire and Were named Mathis, breaking her arm in the process. She is able to see via her telepathy that he followed her from the tattoo parlor earlier. The two begin to squabble at each other, then Eric appears.

**In chapter 6...**

Eric and the Asian vampire fight while Mathis begins to chant support spells. Sookie takes the Were-witch out with a tire iron, removing the Asian vamp's advantage. Evenually Eric decapitates him, but Sookie urges him to spare the Were for questioning. Sookie passes out due to her injuries but Eric wakes her and convinces her to take his blood. Similar to his instincts to feed, glamour, flee sunlight, etc., he knows his blood will heal her. He has an orgasm while feeding her.

While Sookie is experiencing the high of vampire blood for the first time, Eric snugs up behind her. They share a kiss, but are interrupted by the Were-witch coming around. They take Mathis back to Sookie's and question him, learning that Marnie Stonebrook was promised Eric in exchange for her help in destabilizing the Louisiana vamps – meaning Eric is not the only vampire out there suffering the same condition.

**In Chapter 7...**

Further along in the interrogation, Mathis confesses the vampire's name was Kim Jade, and he was part of another group looking to take over Louisiana. The Stonebrook Coven was going to take over the Shreveport Pack. Sookie hears a flicker of Eric's thoughts. Mathis begins to chant a spell and Eric drains him in front of Sookie.

Eric takes the body of Mathis away in the second car, and Sookie calls in her accident. Kevin informs her that there was another fatal car accident that night. Kenya comes out in the morning, once she's on shift, to investigate Sookie's crash.

**In Chapter 8...**

Sookie realizes the full effects of the vampire blood in her improved appearance and ability to maintain her shields. Kenya is rightfully skeptical of Sookie's story. While there, she informs them that Mark Stonebrook from Arkansas is the man who died in the other crash.

Sookie's car was towed to a repair shop, and when they go to get a quote for her insurance Mark Stonebrook's car was there too. She steals the witchcraft paraphernalia and kidnapping supplies discovered in the trunk. Later she goes to visit Greg Aubert, her insurance agent, and learns that he is a witch with some connection to the Stonebrooks. Sookie calls him on it.

**In Chapter 9...**

Greg Aubert reluctantly reveals that Hallow (Marnie Stonebrook) has threatened to curse his family if he doesn't join their coven. Sookie advices him not to go to the meeting and takes the address instead. She asks him about lifting curses (thinking of Eric's) but he doesn't believe he can help.

At work, Sam immediately senses the change in Sookie's appearance and smell, and though he clearly has knowledge of vampires, Sookie doesn't fess up. After her shift, Eric shows up and informs her that a collie growled at him in her woods. He was back there having a bath in the creek, and Sookie brushes his hair for him. They decide to visit the surviving passenger in Mark Stonebrook's crash in the ICU the following night.

Eric stays with Sookie in her bed until dawn, just snuggling. She comes very close to revealing her telepathy, but catches herself. Eric already knows there's something special about her.

* * *

Chapter 10 - Actually, That's My Assistant

He was gone in the morning. Well, I knew he would be, but I still found myself turning toward the space he had occupied and breathing in his scent just to reassure myself that he had really been there. It was a nice scent, dry, but also like the outdoors, and something sweet, and something distinctly masculine. He probably had super pheromones to match his super strength, and super healing, and all his other amazing talents. Super snuggling, too. That's got to be in the top ten of his talents.

The window was locked up tight, so he must have gone out the front door and locked it behind him. That was considerate.

It was the first day in a few days that I was actually up at my normal time. Gran was wide awake already. She had always been an early riser, but it had only gotten more pronounced as she aged. She was in a strange mood, I could tell it from here. I was quick in the bathroom before going out to join her.

"Good morning Sookie," she said very formally.

"Morning Gran," I replied.

She whipped a plate of eggs and pancakes out of the warmer and set it down in front of me, where the syrup, salt, and pepper were already laid out. It was a little much for a weekday, just the two of us here. Had Jason been by earlier?

"It smells delicious," I smiled, trying to read her. She was thinking hard about not thinking of something. Well if the breakfast wasn't a red flag, that certainly was.

"Everything okay this morning?" I asked. "How's Aunt Linda doing today? You talk to her yet?"

"She says she's feeling good. Might go for a walk around her block."

"That's great," I enthused, but instead of agreeing, Gran hitched her hands up on her hips and aimed herself at me with a stern look on her face.

"Sookie, now I want to begin by saying that I know you're a grown woman."

Oh no.

"Gran, no," I began plaintively, but she held up a hand to silence me.

"But even though you are a grown woman, that does not give you the right to sneak a man into my house while I am sleeping in it."

"Gran, it's not like that at all," I started to say, but she had been building this up for a couple of hours now and there was no stopping her.

"And even though we are all adults here..." she continued. "Sookie, what kind of man skulks out of a woman's bed before the crack of dawn? I got up to get a drink of water and almost ran smack into him going for the porch door. Now we had this talk. _We had this talk_ when you started working at the bar, and you _promised_ me you weren't going to get involved with these men, and you weren't gonna bring them home..."

"No, Gran, it's not like that. He's not from the bar, and he's not... we're not..."

"You're not what?"

"All we did is sleep. He came over... after work, and we just fell asleep."

"After his work? What does he do?"

"He um. He works for the State Park Service," I blurted out. Well, it was outdoorsy, and the first thing that flew into my mind. Although why I'd chosen that, when I could have picked any of half dozen places that Eric either owned or co-owned, I couldn't say.

"The Park Service," Gran repeated, unconvinced.

"Yes, they have to patrol at night sometimes. Because of the teenagers," I added quickly, cringing mentally at the outrageous lie. Actually though, if a vampire ever did have something like a regular job that might be a good one. Just woe betide any high school kids thinking they'd go out to Lake Claiborne to drink their daddy's beer.

"Uh-huh," she said.

"Gran, I swear to you, it's innocent. We just fell asleep, and if he was skulking out, well, it was only to spare us all this... this... _mortification_," I declared. The heroines in my novels were always suffering mortifications like this. Personally I'd hoped never to have occasion to use that word in reference to myself.

"It's not the first time he was here."

"He was here the other night," I admitted, continuing vague.

"And he took a shower."

"He was all... sweaty... and dirty. From work. I'm sorry, Gran."

"And I'm assuming you also saw him in Shreveport the other day," she deduced, confidently and wrongly.

It was a better explanation than the truth, but I didn't want to tell more lies than I had to. I just hung my head in shame and let her draw her own conclusion.

"I think I ought to meet him," she said. "And I don't mean in my nightdress this time."

I pressed a hand to my forehead and shook my head.

"Gran, we are not... I don't think..."

She had her hand up again, shushing me.

"I've said my peace. In this one instance, I will assume that he heard about the accident and needed to reassure himself that you were safe and sound. That's what I'm willing to forgive him, one time only. Do I make myself clear?"

"Yes ma'am," I said.

"Good. Now, I am going up to the church for an hour or so. You eat up those eggs, and I'll be back with the car before you've got to go to work," she said, and left the kitchen.

Despite how she'd begun her speech, I was left feeling nothing at all like a grown woman, and everything like a scolded child. I totally deserved it, too.

I was not alone in that, either. Eric deserved a stern talking-to as well. How had he been fool enough to get caught by Gran? I know he must have heard her if she was moving around. Why hadn't he just used his hypnotism on her? On second thought, I would be furious if he ever tried. Maybe he _had_ tried, but she was like me and it didn't work on her. Maybe my weirdness was genetic after all. God, but that would be reassuring.

I had the early shift that day, which was no picnic after closing the night before, but all of us waitresses had to do it once in a while. It would free up my evening for the trip to the hospital and there would be enough time to see Mr. Aupert, so I wouldn't complain. Sam was not there when I first came in. Terry Bellefleur had been here and gone, I knew that from the faint bleachy smell around the bathrooms and the more vinegar scent in the dining room. I flipped on the fans to try to disperse some of it. Lafayette was in the back doing his prep work. He told me Sam had been in to unlock, and gone straight back to bed. Said he looked like he'd had a late night.

With yesterday's revelation that Sam knew about vampires, I was curious about the nature of his private life in a way I'd never been before. I'd never noticed any fang marks on his neck. I tried to think back to if there'd ever been a time when he showed up looking a lot more spiffy than usual. He'd had a haircut a few weeks ago, but that was all that came to mind.

The nice thing about an early shift is that the time really seems to fly. I got the chairs down, brewed the tea, put it on ice, brewed the coffee, rolled some silverware, restocked the bar towels, and dug out a fresh apron.

Sam finally rolled up just in time to start pouring pitchers for the lunch crowd. There was definitely something off about him. I could feel it especially when he looked at me. As curious as I was in general, I was trying to stay out of his head. I didn't want to risk hearing something that I couldn't un-hear. Sam was a good boss. Best I'd ever had in my life so far, and I didn't want to spoil that. When I felt his eyes on me I tried very hard not to notice.

The trouble started up about three o'clock, long after the working men had come and gone. There were a couple of people having a late lunch, but my biggest table was full of Gran's friends from church. There weren't that many places around where a group like this could congregate, and we served tea by the pitcher as well as beer, so the old ladies didn't seem so very out of place.

The thing was, Gran must have confided something to somebody because as soon as I came over to take their order I got a many-toned mental blast of "Sookie has a secret boyfriend."

Well, hell.

"Good afternoon ladies, what can I getcha'll?" I smiled my crazy smile at them.

I wrote down all their food. They might only drink sweet tea or lemonade, but by golly those women can eat. I should look forward to that, one day – being on the far side of sixty and not feeling the slightest reservation towards an extra helping of fried onion rings, if the mood struck me. These gals could cover all manner of sins in their billowing blouses and ample-seated pants. Any why shouldn't they enjoy themselves?

After I'd stepped away the low tittering started. They all agreed, I was looking particularly effervescent today. It could only be love. Or lust. Either way, to them I looked like a woman with a man to think about.

"Good grief," I muttered, coming behind the bar to mix the sugar into the tea. It's a chore having to do this every time, but Sam thinks it's better that we make it _to-order_, as they say. We're just plumb fancy here at Merlotte's. Next thing you know we'll have one of those cappuccino machines. Yeah, right.

"What's got in to them?" Sam asked blandly, but he knew. Had he heard them talking?

"You know how folks around here like to gossip," I shrugged.

"And what are they gossiping about today?" he pressed.

Oh, not him, too.

"The usual," I said. "Other people's _private_ business."

"That so?"

"Yes that's so," I said, wiping the sweat off the icy pitcher and setting it up so I could grab it easily once I had the tray in hand. "It's just things that don't concern them."

"Maybe they've got a right to be concerned," he said, only he wasn't thinking of social or moral implications of my sneaking around with some park ranger who I hadn't seen fit to introduce to my grandmother. He was thinking of vampires again.

"You got something more to say, Sam? Then maybe after I bring these fine women their drinks we should step into your office. Otherwise, I will be about my business."

And with that, I went off, re-fixing my smile and letting the ladies know that their food would be up in a jiffy.

"Did you hear that poor man up in Shreveport died?" one of the women was saying. "The one who got beat up at the tattoo parlor?"

"I hear they're saying it's gang related, and that police chief going on the news not three weeks ago to tell us how he's cleaning up the streets."

They all shook their heads, tutting at violence, death, and disingenuous civil servants.

At least they weren't talking about me anymore.

I was sorry to hear that the last man from Eric's tattoo parlor had died. I wondered if he'd ever been conscious enough to tell the police that the attack had been a "message for Eric Northman." I wondered if they were now looking for Eric too.

Sam stayed behind the bar, indicating that we were not going to hash out whatever was going on between us. The phone rang, and I went to do a little drink freshening at my other tables, delivered a check, and came back around to stand at the bar. A good waitress places herself in ready sight of the patrons, but far enough removed so as not to hover. If anybody looked up for my attention, I'd see them.

I wasn't paying attention to what Sam was saying into the phone so when he slammed it back onto the wall in frustration, I jumped.

"What?"

"Danielle's daughter just got sent home from school with lice," he said in a low voice.

I made a face. You couldn't judge. It went around the schools and girls especially, always swapping each other's combs and brushes, were susceptible. I'd never had it, but there were a couple of times when the teachers had to send notes home alerting the parents in class when one kid had it.

"I can't risk having her in here if there's a chance she's got it too," Sam said. "Sookie, I hate to ask, but do you think you could stay tonight?"

"You don't think Arlene and Dawn can handle it?" I frowned.

"I'm not sure if..." he began, and I got a massive wave of guilt off of him before the phone started ringing again. That was weird.

It was Arlene. I could hear her shrieking through the receiver. Someone – probably that no good ex-boyfriend of hers, never should have taken up with him in the first place – had slashed her tires. She had to find a way to go and pick up her kids and then who knew if she'd be able to make it in tonight. She was calling her cousin.

This time Sam cursed when he hung up, drawing the attention of a couple of the ladies over in the dining room. I shook my head with a rueful smile and hurried over to apologize and ask them if they wanted anything else.

"Sookie, I really need you to stay tonight."

"Sam, I got plans..."

"Please Sook, I'm desperate. It's football tonight."

I gave a heavy sigh.

"I'll pay you time and a half," he blurted out.

That wasn't much, considering I was on a tipped wage, but it went to showing his need.

"I'll need to run home at some point for my dinner break," I said carefully. "I got something to take care of there."

"Go now," he said quickly. "Before folks start coming in from work."

"I can't yet," I said. It was still light out. I had to go home once it got dark and inform the vampire waiting there that I would not be able to go see Thomas Yaxley after all.

Sam gritted his teeth, but nodded once.

"Okay, fine. We'll work something out so you can go to dinner. Maybe I can get someone else to come in for just an hour to cover."

He hurried back to his office then to make the calls, leaving me to clear the dining room. I spoke with Gran before she left with her friends and she agreed to call Greg and reschedule my appointment when she got home.

Unfortunately, Sam could get no one else to come in. Ginny was up in Shreveport, and Charlsie's husband had the flu, leaving Sam in a foul, resentful mood. He wasn't counting on Arlene being able to make it in at all. Dawn didn't arrive until six and I was so relieved to see her by then I could have hugged her nasty, brother-loving self.

By eight o'clock I still hadn't had my break. All I could do was hide in the kitchen for five minutes and choke down a burger and a big glass of coke, hoping the combination of protein, sugar, and caffeine would be enough to keep me going. It wasn't the first time I'd ever worked a double shift, but it was just as much hell.

Lafayette was on a long day too, I realized, but Sam was gonna close the kitchen up after half-time, so he wouldn't be here as late as us. He looked swamped at the moment though.

"Sookie, could you pull them bags outside when you go? I ain't got room to turn around in here," he called over his shoulder.

"Sure thing," I said wearily, and started to drag the trash down the little hall as he called up another order of chicken wings for Dawn to deliver. I'd have to give my hands and forearms a good scrubbing before I went back to the floor. Maybe change my apron too. Maybe see if there was a spare t-shirt too. This one was going to be rank by the end of the night.

Lifting loaded bags of kitchen garbage up into a dumpster is not the easiest thing when you're already dead on your feet. Unless of course you're dead on your feet in the sense that you are a vampire. As I was trying to push my burden up over the lip of the giant trash receptacle, Eric appeared out of nowhere and half a second later there were one, two thuds as the bags landed in their proper place.

"What are you...?"

"You didn't come to your house. I waited. I have been waiting since full dark. The old woman, your grandmother, is there. I didn't dare to approach again. She saw me this morning."

I puffed out my cheeks as I exhaled.

"About that. What were you thinking letting her see you?"

Eric's face fell.

"I didn't intend it. I stayed too long with you, and then I heard her and hoped she was just going to another part of the house. When she came in and turned on the light, she yelped and I thought she was going to call the human authorities. I told her I was your guest. I didn't want to use my will on her because you wouldn't like it, and I _was_ your guest."

His shoulders seemed to hunch as he proclaimed, for maybe the dozenth time since she'd met him, that he was very sorry.

"She thinks you're my boyfriend."

"If anything I am a man, not a boy," he said distastefully.

"It's just an expression for the man a woman is seeing."

"Well, you are seeing me now. I am your boyfriend then. Man-friend."

Lord, save me.

"You're not. I'll explain it another time, I've got to get back to work."

"But we are to go to the hospital. That's why I have come."

"It'll have to be tomorrow, I'm sorry. Two of the other girls that work here got held up, so they really need me to stay. I've been out too long as it is," I said, turning to go.

"Wait," he said, taking hold of my arm in a light but firm grip. I looked up at him. "Tell me how to get there, and I will go. I'll come for you later and tell you what I learned."

"Eric, that's a bad idea."

"You said yourself, he is in the intensive care unit. He could die at any time. We may not have until tomorrow."

_And we wouldn't need this Yaxley so much if you hadn't killed Mathis_, I wanted to say, but didn't. I'd been gone too long from inside. Dawn was gonna kill me.

"Fine, okay. You can follow roads, right? There's numbers every mile or so, that tell you what route you're on, and arrows and things at the intersections. Here's what you do..." As best as I could I gave him landmark directions to Granger, keeping him on the back roads and warning him to stay out of sight as much as possible.

This didn't feel like a great idea, but neither did keeping an antsy vampire around.

"Promise me you won't approach if you smell any werewolves or other vampires."

"Well, what if this Thomas is a werewolf?"

"Eric, just be careful, okay? Promise me?"

"I promise I will be careful."

"Do you think you can find your way back?"

"I will just come to you. I can find you now," he informed me.

"Beg pardon?"

"I think it is because you have had my blood. There is a part of me in you, so I can find where you are. That's how I got here. I came through the woods. It's hard to track you on the roads because the cars mostly smell the same."

"Well, there's a hell of a thing," I murmured.

"Sook? You still out there? Sam's shoutin' for you!" came Lafayette's voice.

"Go," I said pushing Eric's unresisting frame back a pace. "Don't do anything stupid," I warned him a final time. "Get whatever answers you can, and stay out of sight as much as you can."

With that, I darted inside calling, "Coming!" out before making a quick stop at the bathroom to wash off my dinner, the garbage, and the faint aroma of vampire.

Three hours later, our beloved LSU had crossed the point of no return, destined to lose their game. The crowd thinned out considerably as folks gave up watching and headed home. Normally a bar owner roots for the home team because a victory means his patrons will stay out to celebrate, but tonight said owner was very grateful that the end of the day came that much sooner.

"I'm sorry you never really got your break," he said.

"It's fine," I shrugged, putting my dishwasher tray down on the side of the bar and starting to put things away. "I took care of... what needed taking care of."

I hoped.

Sam nodded, and helped me with the last few mugs. Finally by midnight we had cleared out the last of our patrons and Sam was quick to lock the front door and shut out the light on the sign outside. I got the last of the dishes in while Sam and Dawn wiped down out front and got the chairs put up. Sam called Terry to warn him that we'd been short-staffed and done a piss-poor job of cleaning up. Terry said he'd cover us in the morning. Good guy.

Dawn was off with a hop, skip, and a jump, waving as she darted ahead of us through the back door. She sped off in her car while I waited for Sam to lock up, leaning wearily against the wall.

"Thanks again for staying tonight Sookie. You're a life-saver."

"You can count on me, boss," I said. It was meant to sound cheerful, but it came out weak.

"Come on, let's get you to your car," he said, and placed his hand flat on my back to guide me. It was more a gesture of camaraderie than anything. It sure felt like we'd been through a war zone tonight.

Suddenly he went stiff beside me and I heard him draw in a sharp breath through his nose. Once again his predominant thought was _vampire_, and right below that was worry and urgency. He must be picking up on Eric from earlier. Could he recognize the smell, even out here? I sniffed myself, trying to catch it. I thought that just maybe, I could.

Sam saw me into Gran's car and stood caged around the door after I'd sat down and buckled myself in. He warned me to lock the doors, which I did. "Park right near your house when you get there," he advised, "And don't stop for anything."

"Sam," I finally said. "I know we're not really talking about this, okay? But I'm just helping out a friend."

"They're not your friends," he said, sounding very sure about it.

"Sam..." I started to say, and suddenly he was gone. I heard his shout and a thump and spray and scatter as something fell and slid on the sparse gravel. "Sam?!" I shouted, struggling to get out after him but finding myself strapped down by the belt. I fumbled at it, catching another one of those white flashes out of the corner of my eye. I was learning to recognize them now. Another goddamned vampire.

Suddenly there was click and my door was slammed shut right in my face. I lurched back, eyes darting wildly around, searching for the attacker, but the voice came from behind me as a hand reached around and clasped my neck from the backseat. I was vaguely aware of the sound of the rear door snapping shut.

"Alright human. Take me to Eric Northman."

My gaze shot to the rear view mirror and I could see nothing but the elegant white hand splayed across my throat. I reached up slowly and fumbled the keys into the ignition, then drove slowly past the prone form of my boss. I'm pretty sure he was still breathing.


End file.
